AGM-183A ARRW

The AGM-183A ARRW, short for Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon, is a prototype hypersonic weapon planned for use by the United States Air Force. Developed by Lockheed Martin, the missile has a reported maximum speed of Mach 20. It has been theorized to be the "Super-Duper Missile" referred to by President of the United States Donald Trump during a May 2020 press availability.

AGM-183A ARRW
A prototype AGM-183A is pictured carried by a U.S. Air Force B-52 in a June 2019 test.
Place of originUnited States
Service history
Used byUnited States (Anticipated)
Production history
ManufacturerLockheed Martin
Specifications
Maximum speed Mach 20
Launch
platform
B-1B/B-52/F-15 (theorized)[1]

History

Development and acquisition

In August 2018, the U.S. Air Force awarded a $480 million contract to Lockheed Martin for the development of an air-launched hypersonic weapon.[2] The resulting missile, the AGM-183A ARRW ("Arrow"), underwent an initial captive carry flight test aboard a U.S. Air Force B-52 in June 2019.[2]

In February 2020, the Trump Administration proposed a 23 percent increase in funding for hypersonic weapons and, the same month, the U.S. Air Force announced it had decided to move forward with acquisition of the AGM-183A.[3][4]

In March 2020, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Michael D. Griffin stated that the United States was "close at hand" to having a hypersonic boost-glide weapon ready to field.[5]

Theorized relation to the "Super-Duper Missile"

A "Super-Duper Missile" was announced by US President Donald Trump during a press availability in the Oval Office on 15 May 2020.[6][7] According to Trump, the Super-Duper Missile is 17 times faster than existing missiles in the United States arsenal, however, Kingston Reif of the Arms Control Association believes the claim may have been a misstatement.[8][9][10] PBS news correspondent Nick Schifrin has theorized that the Super-Duper Missile is, in fact, the AGM-183A, as has the China Times.[11][12]

Design and performance
According to Popular Mechanics, the U.S. Air Force is considering using the remaining fleet of B-1Bs as AGM-183 firing platforms.

The AGM-183A has a maximum speed of 24,695 kilometres per hour (15,345 mph).[13]

The weapon uses a boost-glide system, in which it is propelled to hypersonic speed by a rocket on which it's mounted before gliding towards a target.[3] According to Popular Mechanics, the U.S. Air Force was, as of April 2020, considering using the remaining fleet of B-1B bombers as AGM-183A firing platforms, with each aircraft carrying up to 31 of the weapons mounted internally and on external pylons.[13]

See also

References
  1. Tirpak, John A. (March 2, 2020). "Roper: The ARRW Hypersonic Missile Better Option for USAF". Air Force Magazine. Retrieved June 6, 2020. The reason we went with ARRW was not that HCSW was bad, but ARRW is smaller; we can carry twice as many on the B-52, and it’s possible it could be on the F-15
  2. Pawlyk, Oriana (June 18, 2019). "In First, Air Force Flies Hypersonic Missile Prototype on B-52 Bomber". military.com. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  3. Tirpak, John (March 2, 2020). "Roper: The ARRW Hypersonic Missile Better Option for USAF". Air Force Magazine. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  4. Sanger, David E. (February 10, 2020). "Trump Budget Calls for New Nuclear Warheads and 2 Types of Missiles". New York Times. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  5. Harper, Jon (March 4, 2020). "JUST IN: Pentagon to Spend Billions Mass-Producing Hypersonic Weapons". National Defense Magazine. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  6. Pickrell, Ryan (May 15, 2020). "Trump says the US is building a 'super-duper missile' that is much faster than anything it has now". Business Insider. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  7. Johnson, Marty (May 16, 2020). "Trump touts new 'super-duper' missile that can allegedly travel 17 times faster than current missiles". The Hill. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  8. Choi, David (May 19, 2020). "Trump's boasts about 'super-duper' missiles reflect misunderstanding of what those weapons actually do". Business Insider. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  9. Browne, Ryan (May 16, 2020). "Trump touts new 'super duper' missile but Pentagon won't confirm details". CNN. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  10. "Trump says US developing a 'super duper missile'". Times of Israel. Associated Press. May 16, 2020. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  11. Schifrin, Nick. "For those interested, the aforementioned super duper missile AGM-183 Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon hypersonic". @nickschifrin. Twitter. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  12. "川普：美國將有「超級飛彈」速度超乎想像". China Times (in Chinese). May 18, 2020. Retrieved May 18, 2020.CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  13. Mizokami, Kyle (April 9, 2020). "The B-1 Bomber Might Start Slinging Hypersonic Missiles". Popular Mechanics. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
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