Current US hypersonic weapons projects. (General)

bring_it_on said:
Looking at the trajectory of capability and quantity the Chinese are putting out both in their near abroad and eventually globally, it does not take a whole lot of imagination to come up with a scenario where ALHWs are a key part of the USNs conventional capability in the post 2030 timeframe.
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What is ALHW? Did you mean LRHW?
 
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Lc89 said:
bring_it_on said:
Looking at the trajectory of capability and quantity the Chinese are putting out both in their near abroad and eventually globally, it does not take a whole lot of imagination to come up with a scenario where ALHWs are a key part of the USNs conventional capability in the post 2030 timeframe.
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What is ALHW? Did you mean LRHW?
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I think ALHW = air launched hypersonic weapon
 
How about USNs strap AGM-183A to Boeing P-8?
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I see no advantage in an MPA fleet being used to deliver hypersonic strike weapons even if they were theoretically able to do so. The mission that they perform is complex as it is, and delivering long range strike weapons inland (from the air) is why we have the Bomber and Strike fighter force.
 
bring_it_on said:
How about USNs strap AGM-183A to Boeing P-8?
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I see no advantage in an MPA fleet being used to deliver hypersonic strike weapons even if they were theoretically able to do so. The mission that they perform is complex as it is, and delivering long range strike weapons inland (from the air) is why we have the Bomber and Strike fighter force.
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There is no way a P-8 could carry that weapon. The B-52 had to have a new 'heavy release' pylon system developed for it. I doubt the P-8's total warload is sufficient for more than one missile even if you could find a way to attach it. The weapons it is cleared for are in the 500-1000lb weight range, though I assume the wing hard points probably could take 1000kg. And I agree these aircraft will have much better things to do and couldn't be spared for this role.
 
Josh_TN said:
The B-52 had to have a new 'heavy release' pylon system developed for it.
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I don't think the "heavy release" pylon was for the AGM-183. IIRC the modification was for 20,000lb weapons and there's no weigh the thing weighs anything like that.
 
My thought was that the 20k figure covered two weapons on the same pylon. There isn’t a 20k weapon in open source outside GBU-43, and I have a hard time believing there’s a reason or enough in inventory to justify the modification. I think it’s only been used twice. It’s possible some completely unknown weapon created the requirement, but I read it as a need to comfortably handle two weapons in the 6-7,000 lb range with some rounding up for good measure.
 
The odd thing is the note about torpedoes in the VPT. That's the first time I've seen anything about torpedoes from a vertical launcher, and it raises questions about wire guidance.
 
TomS said:
The odd thing is the note about torpedoes in the VPT. That's the first time I've seen anything about torpedoes from a vertical launcher, and it raises questions about wire guidance.
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I guess if someone's dropping depth charges it helps to be able to fire back.
 
sferrin said:
What graphic are we talking about here? :confused:
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The one posted by Lc89 that is labeled as coming from the Naval League. So not official, but usually in line with official statements.
 
TomS said:
sferrin said:
What graphic are we talking about here? :confused:
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The one posted by Lc89 that is labeled as coming from the Naval League. So not official, but usually in line with official statements.
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(Ah. He was on my ignore list. Seems like for a while you'd still see that someone on your ignore list posted but not their post. Now you don't see anything at all.)
 
Hypersonic Weapons Summit
https://www.asdevents.com/event.asp?id=21805
Enabling Hypersonic Overmatch for US Multi-Domain Superiority
The age of Hypersonic Weapons is upon us. In light of the rapidly growing capabilities of this game changing munitions technology which enable and allow for global strike capabilities much faster than conventional means, our Hypersonic Weapons events series has been established to comprehensively analyze and enable the realization of next generation capability. Building on the success of our inaugural Summit, the 2nd Annual Hypersonic Weapons Summit will provide a continuation and more thorough review of ongoing hypersonic capability development in order to capitalize on Military advancements.

Near peer capability development is at an all-time high. We are seeing swift developments across multiple technologies that endanger current levels of battlefield overmatch for US multi-domain superiority. Of these challenges, the ones we cannot see, detect, or track provide the greatest level of threat, and that is why the development of hypersonic weapons is imperative.

As this capability and community continues to evolve from R&D, to the Labs and to the Battlefield, it will require constant discussion and ongoing reviews to assure development of hypersonic weaponry continues at the speed of sound! Join our Hypersonic Weapons International Summit for the unique opportunity to not only learn from those leading the technology revolution, but also to stake your own place in this rapidly evolving community.
Topics Covered Include:
  • Efforts to Rapidly Field Hypersonics across the Total Force
  • Service Roadmaps and Hypersonic Strategy
  • Guiding S&T Efforts to Meet Extreme Hypersonic Engineering Challenges
  • Advancing Partnership Development to Ease Unity of Efforts
  • Testing Opportunities and Cross-Service Initiatives to Bolster Integration
Hypersonic Capabilities at the Speed of Sound
  • Understand the Navy's Approach for Prompt Global Strike Hypersonic Capabilities
  • Learn About the Global Ramifications of Securing Hypersonic Technology
  • Ascertain USD Acquisition and Sustainment's Hypersonic Priorities
  • Receive Guidance from USD R&E's Hypersonic Lead
  • Laser in on the Army's FY2023 Hypersonic Fielding Roadmap
 

Attachments

  • E021805-agenda.pdf
    1.1 MB · Views: 50
TomS said:
The odd thing is the note about torpedoes in the VPT. That's the first time I've seen anything about torpedoes from a vertical launcher, and it raises questions about wire guidance.
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I found that odd too. It certainly would be sub optimal for the mk48 series - the geometry would prevent any possible wire guidance even if the tubes were designed to store and communicate over that medium, which I suspect would itself be difficult. The idea of air launched decoys also seemed a little weird, unless they intended them to carry a package that was substantially different from current MALD-J with a different role.

I feel like in practice CPGS will ocupy the back tubes and BGM-109 or its follow on will take the front, though there is also Sea Dragon to consider.
 
images


Although hypersonic missiles are a top modernization priority for the Pentagon, there are no efforts underway to arm such weapons with nuclear warheads, according to a Department of Energy leader.

“We are currently not undertaking a nuclear hypersonic [project], unlike other nations,” Lisa Gordon-Hagerty, undersecretary of energy for nuclear security, told reporters Nov. 7 in Washington, D.C. Gordon-Hagerty also serves as the administrator for the National Nuclear Security Administration, which is responsible for maintaining and overseeing the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile.

To counter great power competitors such as Russia and China, the Defense Department has marked hypersonic weapons as its No. 1 research-and-development priority. The systems will be capable of traveling at speeds of Mach 5 or faster and be highly maneuverable, making them difficult for enemy air-and-missile defenses to defeat.

Beijing and Moscow have publicly stated their intentions to field these types of weapons and are ramping up their R&D efforts.

But unlike the United States, both governments have acknowledged that they are pursuing hypersonic missiles that are nuclear-capable. For example, Russian state media such as Sputnik News has reported that Moscow’s Kinzhal air-launched missile system is able to carry both nuclear and conventional warheads. The Congressional Research Service has noted that Russia and China may field an operational hypersonic glide vehicle by 2020.

Gordon-Hagerty said the National Nuclear Security Administration has no current studies underway to examine the possibility of adding nuclear payloads to U.S. hypersonics.

“We were studying it in the ‘80s and in the past,” she said. “There's not a current study.”

Because the United States is focusing on conventional payloads, its weapons will need to have “greater accuracy and will be more technically challenging to develop than nuclear-armed Chinese and Russian systems,” CRS stated in its September report, “Hypersonic Weapons: Background and Issues for Congress."

 
Will the C-HGB be able to hit any part of the world within an hour due to the fact that it is not powered by propellants, but only driven by its vector at hypersonic speeds?
 
TomS said:
The odd thing is the note about torpedoes in the VPT. That's the first time I've seen anything about torpedoes from a vertical launcher, and it raises questions about wire guidance.
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A little OT, I recently read an article on The Drive that mentioned a USN EW program named 'NEMISIS' which likely explains why MALD is being considered as a Virginia payload.

www.thedrive.com

The Navy's Secretive And Revolutionary Program To Project False Fleets From Drone Swarms

The advanced electronic warfare program uses swarms in the air and sea to cooperatively fool a wide variety of sensors dispersed over a large area.
www.thedrive.com www.thedrive.com
 
Lc89 said:
bobbymike said:
https://twitter.com/x/status/1191837594822135809
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Is this US Navy HGV project just a serious concept or project that will have a following?
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Morphing Waverider is part of an overall NRL morphing structures technology development project. They hope to produce a Morphing Waverider scale test article along the lines of HTV-2 down the road, and eventually the plan/hope is for morphing structures to show up in the next generation of hypersonic weapons/vehicles. But in the immediate future they are concentrating on wind tunnel work.
 
In this article there is a line that talks about a fit-check done on the Tactical Boost Glide.
www.edwards.af.mil

Ten days at the Center of the Aerospace Testing Universe

Nearly a year ago, I shared the scope and scale of activities that took place during a single weekend at Edwards Air Force Base. It is time to do so again, this time focusing on the activities that
www.edwards.af.mil
 
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sferrin said:
TomS said:
sferrin said:
What graphic are we talking about here? :confused:
Click to expand...

The one posted by Lc89 that is labeled as coming from the Naval League. So not official, but usually in line with official statements.
Click to expand...

(Ah. He was on my ignore list. Seems like for a while you'd still see that someone on your ignore list posted but not their post. Now you don't see anything at all.)
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Seems like a classic case of willfully ignore information at your own risk :D.
 
mil-embedded.com

DARPA's hypersonic OpFires program reaches milestone - Military Embedded Systems

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. Aerojet Rocketdyne has finished a series of subscale propulsion-system test firings as part of a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) effort to develop a ground-launched hypersonic missile for tactical use.
mil-embedded.com mil-embedded.com
blog.executivebiz.com

Aerojet Rocketdyne Finishes Preliminary Tests Under DARPA Hypersonics Program; Eileen Drake Quoted - ExecutiveBiz

Aerojet Rocketdyne has concluded the initial firing tests of a hypersonic propulsion system for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
blog.executivebiz.com blog.executivebiz.com
 

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