The U.S. Air Force conducted its second consecutive successful flight of Lockheed Martin’s AGM-183A air-launched rapid response weapon (ARRW), marking the end of the booster testing phase of the hypersonic program, according to Defense News.
The test was conducted July 12, and hypersonic missiles flown from B-52H Stratofortress fighters reached both primary and secondary targets, the U.S. Air Force said in a July 13 statement. With the booster family complete, ARRW will begin full-scale testing later this year.
Brig. Gen. Heath Collins, program executive officer for the Air Force Armament Agency, said the flight test expands the weapon’s operational reach. The test demonstrates the ARRW’s ability to reach and withstand hypersonic speeds and will help the program gather data to inform future tests, according to Lockheed Martin. It also confirmed the weapon’s ability to safely detach from the aircraft and strike targets from long range, the company said in a statement.
A hypersonic vehicle that can fly and maneuver at speeds above Mach 5, the ARRW is the U.S. Air Force’s first air-launched hypersonic weapon. The missile is designed to destroy time-sensitive targets and, once operational, will expand the Air Force’s precision strike portfolio.
The USAF’s last successful ARRW flight occurred in May, snapping a string of three consecutive failed tests of the weapon that has slowed the service’s plans to begin fielding the system this year. Congress cut ARRW procurement funding by nearly $161 million for fiscal year 2022.
The U.S. Air Force’s fiscal year 2023 budget request bypasses ARRW procurement funding. The Air Force plans to request $577 million next year to enhance prototyping.
