The US Air Force is awarding almost $1 billion to Lockheed Martin for the design and development of a hypersonic missile that can be launched from a warplane. The contract is in response to concerns over advances from China and Russia in the field of hypersonic weaponry. These missiles carry the ability to travel at speeds above Mach 5, or roughly 3,800 mph, allowing them to outmaneuver missile defense systems.
One Pentagon official stated that current systems would never see hypersonic missiles coming. Lockheed will receive up to $928 million to build the new, non-nuclear missile that’s been dubbed the hypersonic conventional strike weapon.
Hypersonic weapons can beat traditional anti-missile defenses by switching direction in flight. They also do not follow a predictable arc as with conventional missiles, making them much harder to track and intercept.
Russia has claimed to have developed a new type of hypersonic missile that is impervious to any Western shield. These weapons could be launched from ships, planes, or submarines. The Missile Defense Agency has asked for $120 million to help develop hypersonic missile defenses, a roughly $45 million increase from the previous year’s budget.