Romania approved for additional $280 million Patriot Air Defence System buy
The possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) from the US will cover the system and any related equipment with Lockheed Martin and RTX as primary contractors.
The conventional hypersonic missile test took place from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. (Photo: US DoD)
The US Army and US Navy (USN) have conducted the first live-fire of the Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon system using a battery operations centre and a transporter erector launcher.
The test was conducted by the army’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office (RCCTO) in collaboration with the USN Strategic Systems Programs (SSP), and involved a successful end-to-end flight test of a conventional hypersonic missile.
It was the second successful end-to-end flight test of the All Up Round (AUR) this year and took place from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida.
Northrop Grumman opens new hypersonic propulsion facility
US hypersonic programmes to receive almost $7 billion in 2025
US Army and US Navy test common hypersonic missile in Hawaii
Information gathered from this test will support the first army operational deployment of the common hypersonic AUR as well as a USN sea-based fielding.
Hypersonic systems are designed to fly at Mach 5 and provide a combination of speed, range, manoeuvrability and altitude that enables highly survivable and rapid defeat of time-critical and heavily-defended targets.
The development of the common hypersonic AUR will support the government’s National Defense Strategy and provide combatant commanders with diverse capabilities to sustain and strengthen integrated deterrence and build enduring advantages.
The US Army RCCTO and USN SSP programmes are partnered to rapidly field land and sea variants of a hypersonic weapon system that will meet critical joint warfighting needs.
The Department of Defense said: “The use of a common hypersonic missile and joint test opportunities allow the Services to pursue a more aggressive timeline for delivery and realise cost savings.
“The collaboration between RCCTO and SSP enables the Services to stay ahead of emerging threats and maintain a decisive advantage on the battlefield.”
The possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) from the US will cover the system and any related equipment with Lockheed Martin and RTX as primary contractors.
The new platform was designed to provide 1KW of exportable power as standard and has been developed in partnership with the US Marine Corps (USMC).
Of the six variants in the Ajax programme – reconnaissance (Ajax), reconnaissance support (Ares), C2 (Athena), equipment repair (Apollo), equipment recovery (Atlas) and engineering reconnaissance (Argus) – the Ajax reconnaissance version is now entering service.
The BAE Systems Hägglunds’ CV90 IFV has been around for decades but continual refreshing to maintain power and relevance, along with a healthy market at home in Sweden and neighbouring countries, has led to more than 1,700 vehicle orders with 10 countries.
The order further extends the Oshkosh Defense production line as AM General, selected for US orders, pushes to get vehicles out the door with no room for export orders.
The new US facility for 155mm artillery projectiles is a reflection of a worldwide trend which has also seen Rheinmetall and BAE Systems working to improve capability in the same area.