US Air Force Definitizes Hypersonic Missile Contract
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (June 12, 2019) B-52 out of EDW carries ARRW IMV asset for its first captive carry flight over Edwards Air Force Base. (U.S. Air Force photo by Christopher Okula)
On December 2, the U.S. Air Force definitized a contract to perform critical design review, test, and production readiness support for the Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW), a hypersonic boost-glide vehicle. According to the Department of Defense, the existing contract was modified up to $989 million and is expected to conclude by December 2022. The Air Force had previously awarded $480 million and projected a November 2021 completion date in the prior version of the ARRW contract. As of December 2019, the Department of Defense had obligated $23 million in research and development funds towards ARRW, which completed its preliminary design review in March 2019. The ARRW is planned for carriage on the B-52 bomber.
Contracts for Dec 2, 2019, U.S. Department of Defense
Contracts for Aug 13, 2018, U.S. Department of Defense
Masao Dahlgren, "US Air Force Definitizes Hypersonic Missile Contract," Missile Threat, Center for Strategic and International Studies, December 3, 2019, last modified December 3, 2019, https://missilethreat.csis.org/us-air-force-definitizes-hypersonic-missile-contract/.
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USAF Hypersonic Weapon Fails Flight Test
Shaan Shaikh
On April 5, the U.S. Air Force conducted a rocket booster test of its hypersonic AGM-183A Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW). According to a USAF release, "the test missile was not able to complete its launch sequence" and was not fired. The ARRW is a boost glide hypersonic weapon. The USAF has previously conducted seven...
On December 2, the U.S. Air Force definitized a contract to perform critical design review, test, and production readiness support for the Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW), a hypersonic boost-glide vehicle. According to the Department of Defense, the existing contract was modified up to $989 million and is expected to conclude by December 2022. The...