The AGM-183 ARRW ("Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon") is a

hypersonic In aerodynamics, a hypersonic speed is one that exceeds 5 times the speed of sound, often stated as starting at speeds of Mach 5 and above. The precise Mach number at which a craft can be said to be flying at hypersonic speed varies, since in ...

air-to-ground missile An air-to-surface missile (ASM) or air-to-ground missile (AGM) is a missile designed to be launched from military aircraft at targets on land or sea. There are also unpowered guided glide bombs not considered missiles. The two most common prop ...

planned for use by the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

. Developed by

Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American aerospace, arms, defense, information security, and technology corporation with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It ...

, the

boost-glide Non-ballistic atmospheric entry is a class of atmospheric entry trajectories that follow a non-ballistic trajectory by employing aerodynamic lift in the high upper atmosphere. It includes trajectories such as skip and glide. Skip is a flight tr ...

vehicle is propelled to a maximum speed of more than Mach 5 by a rocket motor before

gliding Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word ''soaring'' is al ...

towards its target.

History

Development and acquisition

In August 2018, the U.S. Air Force awarded a $480 million contract to

for the development of an air-launched hypersonic weapon. The resulting missile, the AGM-183A ARRW ("Arrow"), underwent an initial captive carry flight test aboard a

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

B-52 The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...

in June 2019. In February 2020, the

Trump Administration Donald Trump's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 45th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Donald Trump, his inauguration on January 20, 2017, and ended on January 20, 2021. Trump, a Republican Party ...

proposed a 23 percent increase in funding for hypersonic weapons and, the same month, the

announced it had decided to move forward with acquisition of the AGM-183A. In March 2020,

Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering The Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, abbreviated USD (R&E), is a senior official of the United States Department of Defense. The USD (R&E) is charged with the development and oversight of technology strategy for the DoD. T ...

Michael D. Griffin Michael Douglas Griffin (born November 1, 1949) is an American physicist and aerospace engineer who served as the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering from 2018 to 2020. He previously served as Deputy of Technology for the Str ...

stated that the United States was "close at hand" to having a hypersonic boost-glide weapon ready to field.

Theorized relation to the "Super-Duper Missile"

A "Super-Duper Missile" was announced by US President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

during a press availability in the

Oval Office The Oval Office is the formal working space of the President of the United States. Part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, it is located in the West Wing of the White House, in Washington, D.C. The oval-shaped room ...

on May 15, 2020. 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 The Arms Control Association is a United States-based nonpartisan membership organization founded in 1971, with the self-stated mission of "promoting public understanding of and support for effective arms control policies." The group publishes th ...

believes the claim may have been a misstatement.

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

news correspondent

Nick Schifrin Nick Schifrin (born July 10, 1980) is an American journalist. He is the ''PBS NewsHour'' foreign affairs and defense correspondent. He was previously Al Jazeera America’s Middle East correspondent and a correspondent for ABC News in London and ...

has theorized that the "Super-Duper Missile" is the AGM-183A, as has the ''

China Times The ''China Times'' (, abbr. ) is a daily Chinese-language newspaper published in Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pa ...

''.

Design and performance

The AGM-183A has a claimed maximum speed of more than . The weapon uses a boost-glide system, in which it is propelled to hypersonic speed by a rocket on which it is mounted before gliding towards a target. According to ''

Popular Mechanics ''Popular Mechanics'' (sometimes PM or PopMech) is a magazine of popular science and technology, featuring automotive, home, outdoor, electronics, science, do-it-yourself, and technology topics. Military topics, aviation and transportation o ...

'', the U.S. Air Force was, as of April 2020, considering using the remaining fleet of

B-1B The Rockwell B-1 Lancer is a supersonic variable-sweep wing, heavy bomber used by the United States Air Force. It is commonly called the "Bone" (from "B-One"). It is one of three strategic bombers serving in the U.S. Air Force fleet along with ...

bombers as AGM-183A firing platforms, with each aircraft carrying up to 31 of the weapons mounted internally and on external pylons.

Testing

A booster flight test of ARRW took place in April 2021 at

Point Mugu Sea Range Naval Air Station Point Mugu was a United States naval air station near Oxnard, California, which operated as an independent base from 1941 to 2000, when it merged with nearby Naval Construction Battalion Center Port Hueneme to form Naval Base V ...

, off the coast of Southern California but did not launch successfully;Bill Gertz
3 Mar 2021) Air Force to test hypersonic missile
/ref> this was the eighth test for ARRW.Theresa Hitchen
(3 Jun 2021) B-21 Speeds To IOC; ARRW Test Slated For Next Month: Ray
/ref> Another test in May 2021 for the ARRW's avionics, sensors and communications systems, was successful. The test did not use any of the ARRW’s systems but instead used a B-52 based system. On a flight to Alaska from Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana, the B-52 was able to receive target data from over away.Jack Dutto
(13 May 2021) Air Force Bomber Completes Hypersonic Missile Test
/ref> In July 2021, a second flight test at Point Mugu Sea Range, again being dropped from a

bomber, was a failure as the rocket motor failed to ignite.Stefano D'Urs
(28 July 2021) First Flight Test Of Hypersonic AGM-183A ARRW (Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon) Fails, Again.
/ref>Valerie Insinn
(4 Aug 2021) After latest flight test failure, US Air Force hopes to keep first hypersonic missile on track for production
/ref> On 15 December 2021, the third flight test failed to launch as well. On 9 March 2022, Congress halved funding for ARRW and transferred the balance to ARRW's R&D account to allow for further testing, which puts the procurement contract at risk.Valerie Insinn
(9 Mar 2022) Air Force can’t buy its first hypersonic ARRW as planned, following budget cut
/ref> On May 14, 2022, the 419th Flight Test Squadron and the Global Power Bomber Combined Test Force at

Edwards Air Force Base Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force installation in California. Most of the base sits in Kern County, but its eastern end is in San Bernardino County and a southern arm is in Los Angeles County. The hub of the base is E ...

conducted the first successful test of the ARRW off the coast of Southern California. The weapon demonstrated separation from the

B-52H Stratofortress The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...

. Its booster ignited and burned for the expected duration, and the weapon was able to achieve speeds greater than . The USAF conducted another successful test of the missile on July 12, 2022. The USAF completed the first All-Up-Round (AUR) test on December 9, 2022.Ilka Cole
(12 Dec 2022) Air Force conducts first ARRW operational prototype missile test
/ref> This test included both the booster and hypersonic glide vehicle, after three booster failures (in April, July, and December 2021).Valerie Insinn
(9 Dec 2022) Air Force successfully tests first fully-operational air-launched hypersonic missile

AGM-183A The AGM-183 ARRW ("Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon") is a hypersonic weapon, hypersonic air-to-ground missile planned for use by the United States Air Force. Developed by Lockheed Martin, the boost-glide vehicle is propelled to a maximum spee ...

ARRW's 1st all-up round was successfully tested, reaching Mach 5 and detonating in its terminal area after 3 consecutive test failures (Apr, Jul, and Dec 2021), and 2 successful tests of the booster in May, and July 2022. The USAF 412th Test Wing used a

, at

.Air Force conducts first launch of prototype hypersonic missile
Stephen Losey, DefenseNews.com, 2022-12-13

References

External links

Artist's rendering of an AGM-183A in flight
{{US missiles Military research of the United States Hypersonic aircraft Nuclear missiles of the United States