Raytheon idea for an air-breathing hypersonic cruise missile. (Raytheon)
WASHINGTON: A Raytheon-built hypersonic cruise missile constructed underneath the Defense Department’s categorised Hypersonic Air-Breathing Weapons Concept (HAWC) program efficiently accomplished its first flight final week, the division revealed at present.
“The HAWC free flight test was a successful demonstration of the capabilities that will make hypersonic cruise missiles a highly effective tool for our warfighters,” mentioned Andrew (Tippy) Knoedler, HAWC program supervisor in DARPA’s Tactical Technology Office, in a press launch this afternoon. “This brings us one step closer to transitioning HAWC to a program of record that offers next generation capability to the U.S military.”
DARPA is working the HAWC venture, which is geared toward fleshing out the underlying applied sciences required for scramjet-powered hypersonic cruise missiles. The Air Force is the superior analysis company’s transition accomplice for the venture.
The first HAWC free-flight take a look at was initially deliberate for late final yr, following a profitable Sept. 2020 captive carry take a look at for each the Raytheon missile and a competing variant constructed by Lockheed Martin. That take a look at, as first reported by Air Force Magazine, reportedly would have concerned the Lockheed Martin missile, however was scrubbed on account of issues.
During final week’s take a look at, the DARPA press launch mentioned, the scramjet engine constructed by Northrop Grumman “compressed incoming air mixed with its hydrocarbon fuel and began igniting that fast-moving airflow mixture, propelling the cruiser at a speed greater than Mach 5 (five times the speed of sound).”
Scramjets absorb oxygen from the environment, fairly carrying cumbersome oxygen tanks — as boost-glide rocket boosters do. Thus, air-breathing hypersonic missiles will be made smaller, to be carried by fighter jets fairly than huge, heavy bombers.
But flying at larger than Mach 5 (scramjet powered cruise missiles are estimated to have the ability to fly at about Mach 7) by the environment additionally creates friction, heating up an air-breathing hypersonic weapon in methods a boost-glide design, which spends most of its time in a near-vacuum, doesn't. Scramjets stay experimental, as do most of the supplies designed to maintain temperatures on the missile down in order that avionics and different subsystems can perform.
DARPA’s press launch mentioned the objectives of the mission have been “vehicle integration and release sequence, safe separation from the launch aircraft, booster ignition and boost, booster separation and engine ignition, and cruise.” The company acknowledged that every one “primary test objectives were met.”
DARPA requested $10 million for HAWC in fiscal yr 2022, however the company has not launched a projected date for transitioning the venture to the Air Force.
“The HAWC flight test data will help validate affordable system designs and manufacturing approaches that will field air-breathing hypersonic missiles to our warfighters in the near future,” the company’s press launch mentioned.
Other Efforts
Meanwhile, the Air Force is engaged on one other extremely categorised air-launched hypersonic cruise missile known as the Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile (HACM) — itself based mostly on the analysis being achieved underneath the HAWC venture. The service requested for $190.1 million for the trouble in its 2022 funds request.
A 3rd effort, known as Project Mayhem, can also be underway, however little or no is thought about this system, which is technically generally known as the Expendable Hypersonic Air-Breathing Multi-Mission Demonstrator Program.
Those packages are considerably much less mature, nevertheless, than the Air Force’s main hypersonic R&D effort, the AGM-183A Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW), additionally being developed in tandem with DARPA.
ARRW (pronounced arrow) is a hypersonic glide automobile designed to be carried by a B-52 bomber. The Air Force is looking for about $161 million in fiscal 2022 to supply the primary 12 ARRW missiles, on prime of some $238.3 million in R&D funds. Lockheed Martin Space is the prime contractor.
So far, that program has been a little bit of a bust. ARRW’s failed its first flight take a look at in April. The second booster flight take a look at, on July 28, additionally failed as a result of the engine did not ignite, and the service nonetheless hasn’t launched any data on what precipitated the issue. Nonetheless, the service — for the second, anyway — stays wedded to starting manufacturing of the missile in 2022.
However, new Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall final week throughout the annual Air Force Association convention presaged a possible shake up within the service’s overarching plans for hypersonic missiles. Kendall raised issues each in regards to the maturity of the service’s operational ideas for such high-speed, long-range and extremely maneuverable missiles, in addition to its acquisition technique.
