First Flight Test of Army Hypersonic Missile Successful

The Army on Thursday conducted the first flight test of its Advanced Hypersonic Weapon concept, one of several systems that the Defense Department is demonstrating to mature technology for conventional prompt global strike. The mission was successful, according to a Pentagon release. A three-stage booster system carried the first-of-its kind AHW glide vehicle aloft from the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Kauai, Hawaii, in the direction of the Reagan Test Site in the Kwajalein Atoll. The booster successfully deployed the glide vehicle, said DOD officials. The vehicle flew on its desired non-ballistic glide trajectory at hypersonic speed within the Earth’s atmosphere to the planned impact location at the test site, they said. Sensors on airborne, at-sea, ground and space-based platforms collected data on the vehicle’s performance during all phases of flight. CPGS is Pentagon parlance for the ability to attack any target on the globe within about 30 minutes of an order to strike via ultra-fast missiles carrying non-nuclear warheads.