DN - Defence Notes
Raytheon wins DARPA TBG contract modification
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded Raytheon a contract modification for the Tactical Boost Glide (TBG) programme, it was announced on 29 April.
Under the contract modification worth $20.49 million, Raytheon will develop and demonstrate the technology to enable air-launched hypersonic boost glide systems. Once fielded, TBG could fly faster than Mach 5 and at altitudes of nearly 200,000ft.
Hypersonic weapons would be difficult to intercept, and would enable warfighters to strike targets at long range much more quickly than current missile technology allows.
Tom Bussing, vice president of advanced missile systems, Raytheon, said: 'Hypersonics is the new frontier of missile design and development.
'The extreme environments where these advanced missiles must operate present significant engineering challenges. Our extensive experience and expertise in developing advanced guided weapon systems uniquely position Raytheon to help solve these problems and deliver these solutions.'
To achieve the required speeds, the re-entry vehicles would be designed to skip across the inside of Earth's upper atmosphere before descending on their targets. The new missiles would have to withstand intense heat while remaining highly manoeuvrable, and would require sensor packages to engage moving or re-locatable targets.
More from Defence Notes
-
Podcast: The future of rotorcraft, the air defence market and challenges facing the Royal Air Force
Welcome to Episode 9 of The Weekly Defence Podcast. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify and more. Sign up to an early email alert of future podcasts here.
-
Poland will acquire 5th-generation fighter jets
The Polish MoD has announced its intention to acquire a number of 5th-generation fighter jets and gradually phase out legacy Soviet-era fighters and bombers. Under ...
-
British military opens no-deal Brexit nerve centre
The UK MoD has started up a no-deal Brexit operations centre in a nuclear-bomb-proof bunker in central London, a spokesperson told AFP on 21 March. ...
-
France pours cold water on Trump's NATO Brazil musings
On 20 March 2019 France appeared to nix US President Donald Trump's suggestion that Brazil could become a NATO member while opening the door to ...
-
MBDA encouraged by orders from ‘complex and challenging’ year
Weapons manufacturer MBDA is taking heart from a 2018 orders intake which amounted to €4 billion ($4.6 billion), equivalent to €2.5 billion from domestic markets ...
-
EU announces €500 million for defence projects
On 19 March 2019 the EU announced up to €500 million in funding for defence projects, including the development of a ‘Eurodrone’. The European Commission, ...