Let s take a look at the X-51 Wave rider and how the Super Hornet could be getting a hypersonic
weapons upgrade!
The Navy s current air deployed anti-ship weapon is the AGM-84 Harpoon, which has been
in service for decades.
The AGM-84 is actually one of three versions of the Harpoon: the other two being the RGM-84,
which is launched from surface ships and the third is the UGM-84, which can be launched
from submarines.
With over 7,000 examples built and operators spanning the free world, it is hard to argue
against the Harpoon being a successful design.
However, with its subsonic speeds and the quickly escalating capabilities of near peer
adversaries, the Harpoon could potentially be losing its effectiveness.
It is becoming more evident that a hypersonic anti-ship missile would be effective in neutralizing
enemy point defense systems by virtue of its greater than Mach 5 speeds.
With a hypersonic missile theoretically, an attack could be launched from 1,000 miles
away, take less than 15 minutes reach its target, and leave the defender with little
or no warning.
As a result, the Air Force and Navy have once again revived their efforts into Hypersonic
missile research.
There are basically two types of hypersonic missiles:
Boost Glide hypersonic vehicles which use a booster to accelerate up to speeds of Mach
20 and then deploy a glider which maneuvers to the target, or aerodynamic types which
also use a booster but then activate a scramjet or ramjet to accelerate further.
Unlike traditional ballistic weapons such as ICBMs which follow a predictable path and
can be intercepted, both types of hypersonic missiles can maneuver on their way to the
target, thereby becoming unpredictable and evading enemy defenses.
And in the words of the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff hypersonic weapons could
enable quote responsive, long-range, strike options against distant, defended, and/or
time-critical threats when other forces are unavailable, denied access, or not preferred.
End quote
Today we will take a look at some of the developments in the ongoing hypersonic missile research
programs and how they would conceptually work on the Super Hornet.
One quick note: Currently, The US is looking at using hypersonic weapons with conventional
armaments, China and Russia are also working on hypersonic weapons, but use nuclear warheads
instead, more on that later.
Development
Hypersonic weapons research in the US goes back to the early 2000s.
In 2002 the HyFly Program was initiated by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
or DARPA and the Office of Naval Research or ONR.
Boeing and Aerojet cooperatively built the prototype which was launched from an F-15E
strike Eagle.
In total, three Tests were performed between 2007 and 2010 but a combination of software,
booster, and battery issues caused each of the three tests to end in failure.
Back in 2004, NASA s X-34 Hypersonic Research Aircraft performed two successful record-breaking
flights attaining speeds of Mach 6.8 and then Mach 9.6.
These two X-34 flights represented the world s first scramjet powered hypersonic flights.
A scramjet is a supersonic combustion ramjet, with the notable difference that in a scramjet
the airflow remains supersonic even at the exhaust.
Additionally, in 2006 NASA s Dryden research center mounted an inert AIM-54 Phoenix missile
under their F-15B aircraft and investigated the possibilities of using the Phoenix as
a test vehicle.
You have now seen the Phoenix Missile on an Eagle, achievement unlocked.
Next came the Waverider.
The X-51 Waverider is a scramjet research experimental aircraft designed for hypersonic
flights at Mach 5+ speeds and altitudes of 70,000 feet.
Receiving its official X-51 designation in 2005, the Waverider completed its first hypersonic
flight in May of 2010.
Following two unsuccessful flights, in May of 2013 the X-51 flew for over six minutes
while sustaining Mach 5 speeds for 210 seconds.
The term Waverider in aviation terms is a reference to aircraft which make use of compression
lift generated by their own shock waves.
An early example of this was the XB-70 Valkyrie Bomber, which used mechanically actuated wing
tips that would be lowered to help generate compression lift.
Being an aerodynamic hypersonic vehicle, the X-51 is actually composed of two parts: A
solid Rocket Booster which is the same as the ones used by the rockets fired from the
Army s M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System or MLRS.
This booster accelerates the X-51 to a speed of about Mach 4.5 before burning out and being
jettisoned, at which point the Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne SJY61 scramjet then accelerates
the X-51 to speeds approaching Mach 6.
In flight tests, the X-51 has been carried aboard a B-52 up to an altitude of around
50,000 feet before being launched.
Interestingly, the X-51 represents the Air Forces most significant reinvestment into
hypersonic research since the X-15 which flew over 60 years ago.
I ve made a video all about the X-15, I ll leave a link in the description below.
Getting back to the Waverider, the X-51 has potential but has a relatively high scramjet
activation speed typically around Mach 4.
This means that a larger or heavier booster is needed to attain these high speeds.
However, just last year Congress established the Joint Hypersonic Transition Office, which
has provided funding to Boeing to complete preliminary design and ground testing for
a dual combustion Ramjet.
A dual combustion Ramjet would have lower activation speeds and could theoretically
be made smaller and lighter.
This new effort is being called HyFly2 and has the goal of awarding contracts for hypersonic
missiles in fiscal 2022.
As a result, the Navy is hopeful the dual combustion ramjet can be made small and light
enough to mount on a Super Hornet.
The unofficial requirement is for the Super Hornet to be able to equip up to four of these
missiles, and still be able to land on a carrier with all the missiles on board.
Boeing s HyFly 2 will likely compete against other technology demonstrators in development
which include a Lockheed Martin/Aerojet entry and a Raytheon/ Northrop Grumman entry.
There are plans to fly the competing demonstrators by the end of this year under the Hypersonic
Air-breathing Weapon Concept (HAWC) program, which is jointly funded by DARPA and the Air
Force.
A Super Hornet equipped with these missiles would both prove to be a deterrent to potential
hostile forces seeking to attack a carrier group, as well as provide first strike capabilities
to neutralize high value targets with little warning.
Given their very long range, the Super Hornet could stay well out of the defender s engagement
zone and use stealth assets such as F-35s or F-22s to designate a target for the missile
to fire on.
Conceivably drones launched from submarines could also perform this task.
Additionally, Growlers could provide electronic counter measure support for the Hypersonic
armed Super Hornet, providing a further layer of protection.
Without a doubt any fighter sized hypersonic missile will be very expensive and initially
available in relatively low numbers, once again making the case for their use on only
the highest priority targets.
There is still a place for the AGM -84 Harpoon, just not perhaps as the first option.
Meanwhile, the Air Force has been working on the AGM-183 Air Launched Rapid Response
Weapon or ARRW.
The AGM-183 is a boost glide hypersonic weapon which boosts the missile to speeds of up to
MACH 20 and then the warhead glides and maneuvers to its target.
Currently the AGM-183 has been fitted to a B-52 for testing.
The Air Force is considering using its remaining fleet of B-1 Bombers to carry up to 31 AGM-183s
and be used as a launch platform.
A booster test of the AGM-183 was conducted in April of 2021 but did not successfully
launch.
As mentioned earlier, China and Russia are also developing hypersonic missiles.
However, in both cases the intention is to arm the missiles with nuclear payloads and
as a result do not require as much precision as the missiles the US is working on.
For example, China has been working on a nuclear-capable ALBM or air-launched ballistic missile and
has given it the designation CH-AS-X-13.
China has also performed tests as recently as 2018 on a scramjet vehicle called the Starry-Sky
2.
At the same time, Russia s Zircon hypersonic anti ship missile could be using a scramjet
propulsion system, but it is unknown at this time the exact technologies used in the Zircon.
Given these developments the United States is ramping up its efforts to enter a new era
of mass production of hypersonic missiles.
With a legacy of hypersonic research and test aircraft that dates all the way back to the
1950s and the X-15, there is a large amount of experience to learn from, including the
Advanced Maneuvering Reentry or AMARV program that ran until 1988 and of course the Space
Shuttle which provided 30 years of data on hypersonic reentry procedures.
Today Boeing s X-37 Orbital Test Vehicle which is a reusable robotic space craft continues
to provide data on hypersonic research.
All of this research and development could produce a fighter sized hypersonic anti ship
missile within the next 4 to 5 years, which would breathe new life into the Super Hornet
and provide a significant deterrent to near pear adversaries who are intent on taking
out a carrier battle group.
What do you think?
Are hypersonic missiles the weapon of the future?
Could they change air combat?
Let me know in the comments below.
Thanks for watching, if you enjoyed this video don t forget to click the subscribe button
and then the bell for notifications.
Stay safe, and see you next time!