Hypersonic ᴡᴇᴀᴘᴏɴs have finally arrived after more than 80 years of study in Germany. These ᴡᴇᴀᴘᴏɴs are untraceable, unstoppable, and as devastating as claimed, marking the most significant advancement in Mɪssɪʟᴇs technology since the ICBM.
And like with ICBMs, Russia, China, and the United States are in a race to dominate the space. Russia has three representatives in the race – they include the Kh-47M2 Kinzhal, the 3M22 Zircon, and the Avangard. The Kh-47M2 Kinzhal has already achieved operational status and has earned Russia the title of the first country to use a hypersonic weapon in active combat when they fired the Kinzhal at a target in Ukraine during the ongoing invasion of the country.
China enters the race with the Dongfeng-17 and Xingkong-2, both of which have been impressive in their tests with 100% success, suggesting that at least one of the two is outstandingly close to operational status. That’s less than can be said for the United States as the US has yet to produce a fully functional hypersonic mɪssɪʟᴇs.
However, the country is reportedly developing at least eight different hypersonic weapons, each of which, according to a recent US Defense Department analysis would cost as much as $106 million. These American missiles include those already making a name for themselves such as the AGM-183A and the Hypersonic Air-breathing Weapon Concept, or HAWC (pronounced “hawk”) for short. These hypersonic missiles from the three world powers are what the whole world is afraid of. To understand why, we must first take a look at how hypersonic missiles work. Watch video below to discover more:
