The US Air Force has successfully tested an air-launched hypersonic missile in the Pacific Ocean.
According to the US Air Force, the test was conducted on Sunday from the Guam military base, when a B-52 bomber took off carrying the Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW) and launched it shortly after. However, the US Air Force did not say whether its test was successful or not.
Guam is an island located near China in the Pacific Ocean, where America has a military base and an important strategic center. This is the first time that America has tested ARRW or any hypersonic missile close to China. This test is a big message for the entire Pacific region including China.
According to Defense News, this test conducted by the US Air Force comes amid increasing pressure on the Pentagon to remain in the hypersonic arms race. America has been under pressure for a long time because its two big rivals China and Russia have made great progress in this field.
Not only this, North Korea, close to Russia and China, is also leading in the race for hypersonic weapons. North Korea, ruled by Kim Jong Un, also successfully test-fired a solid-fuel engine for a medium-range hypersonic missile on Tuesday. South Korea’s national media gave this information on Wednesday.
The ‘hypersonic missile’ is part of a series of high-tech weapons systems that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un publicly pledged to introduce in 2021 to deal with growing US hostility.
The official Korean Central News Agency reported that Kim on Tuesday guided the ‘ground jet’ test of a ‘multi-stage solid fuel’ engine for a ‘hypersonic missile’ at the northwestern ‘rocket launch center’.
According to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), experts believe that Pyongyang’s intermediate-range missiles are primarily aimed at the island of Guam, located in the Pacific Ocean, where US military bases are located.
These missiles could potentially reach Alaska and, while within their range, could also pose a threat to US military installations in Japan’s Okinawa island.