Page 8 - ADT JULY - AUGUST 2022 Online Magazine

Defence, a Raytheon Technologies business,
is making significant investments in scramjets.
In 2021, the business, in partnership with the
U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects
Agency, U.S. Air Force and Northrop Grumman,
successfully completed the first flight test of
a scramjet-powered Hypersonic Air-breathing [ COVER STORY ]
Weapon Concept, or HAWC, Missile.

“THE HAWC FLIGHT TEST SUCCESS
WAS IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT
DEMONSTRATED HOW FAR AND iment of Avangard hypersonic missiles. At the end of 2019, Russia
FAST THE GOVERNMENT-INDUSTRY had announced that the country's first hypersonic boost-glide
TEAM HAS MATURED AFFORDABLE vehicle had become operational. According to Strategic Missile
SCRAMJET TECHNOLOGY,” said Wes Force Commander Colonel-General Sergei Karakayev, the first
Kremer, president of Raytheon Missiles & Avangard hypersonic missile systems entered combat duty at the
Defense. Dombarovsky missile division based in the Orenburg Region in the
south Urals. The Avangard is a strategic intercontinental ballistic
Hypersonic weapons – both air-breathing missile system equipped with a hypersonic glide vehicle. According
scramjet and boost-glide – offer increased sur- to open sources, the ‘breakthrough’ weapon was developed by the
vivability against advanced threats compared Research and Production Association of Machine-Building (the
to legacy systems, allowing them to reach town of Reutov, the Moscow Region) and was tested from 2004.
their targets. The altitudes they fly and their The glide vehicle is capable of flying at hypersonic speed in the
range and maneuverability make them difficult dense layers of the atmosphere, maneuvering by its flight path and
to detect and track. “Air-launched weapons its altitude and breaching any anti-missile defence.
combined with Raytheon sensors provide
incredible accuracy with inherent survivability, The new weapon was unveiled by Russian President Vladimir Putin
which equates to increased effectiveness over in his State of the Nation address to the Federal Assembly on March
conventional systems,” Kremer said. 2018. Officials said the ICBM flies 27 times faster than the speed
of sound. During the last known tests that took place in December
Hypersonic weapons, capable of flying at 2018, the Avangard hit a practice target 6,000 kilometers away
speeds greater than five times the speed of across Siberia at speeds up to Mach 27.
sound (Mach 5), are highly maneuverable and
operate at varying altitudes. This provides the “This weapon of the future can penetrate both existing and any
warfighter with an ability to strike targets hun- future missile defense systems,” according to Putin at an annual
dreds and even thousands of miles away, in a Defense Ministry Board meeting in December last. He played up
matter of minutes, to defeat a wide range of Russia as the only country armed with hypersonic weapons, calling
high-value targets. "Hypersonic systems deliver it “a unique situation in our contemporary history where they’re
transformational war-fighting capability," says trying to catch up.”
Principal Director for Hypersonics Mike White.
The Air Force is also seeking information from “Not a single country possesses hypersonic weapons, let alone
industry on the Expendable Hypersonic Air- inter-continental hypersonic weapons. We already have the Kinzhal
Breathing Multi-Mission Demonstrator Program, hypersonic missile systems in the field, and the Peresvet laser
alternatively known as Project Mayhem. combat systems have already been deployed,” Putin said. The
latest ballistic missiles with the Avangard hypersonic glide vehicle
According to White, “Project Mayhem is to look (HGV) are being delivered to the Strategic Missile Forces. “This is
at thenext step in what the opportunity space a weapon of the future that can penetrate both existing and any
allows relative to hypersonic cruise missile sys- future missile defense systems,” Putin said. “Work on other systems
tems” andis intended to be capable of flying is underway, including the Sarmat boosted intercontinental ballistic
“significantly longer ranges than what we’re missile; the Tsirkon ground- and sea-based hypersonic rockets;
doing today.” Mayhem is reported to be larger the Poseidon unmanned underwater vehicle; and the Burevestnik
than ARRW and capable of carrying multiple nuclear-armed cruise missile.” he added.
payloads for different mission sets.
The second design, Kinzhal (dagger), it is claimed can immediately
destroy US nuclear bases in Europe. The stationary weapon is ideal
Russia In The Forefront for a prompt strike. It can be delivered by a high-speed carrier such
Russia's has already put into service its first reg- as a fifth-generation fighter. The missile has a long-range and hit

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