The medium-range hypersonic missile was launched from the back of a Marine Corps logistics truck. Any USMC or Army trucks equipped with the Palletized Load System can be converted into a launch platform.
The July 12 test marks the end of the Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon's booster test phase and paves the way for all-up-round testing later this year.
To prepare for far more contested airspace, the U.S. Air Force is laying the groundwork for a series of radical transformations in how it approaches air combat that could cost at least tens of billions of dollars over the next two decades.
Canada’s defense minister says she’s close to offering a “robust” plan to modernize continental defenses under NORAD, something the U.S. has been seeking to address the complex hypersonic missile threat.
Industry executives have identified testing infrastructure shortfalls as a major barrier to fielding hypersonic weapons capabilities on a faster timeline.
The report from DoD’s acquisition and sustainment office, which says broadly that consolidation poses a national security risk, marks the strongest U.S. government objection to merger and acquisition activity since the defense secretary in 2015 discouraged deals among the largest prime contractors.