US still trying to recycle failed hypersonic missile programs

Just two decades ago, most military analysts were convinced the United States was unrivaled in hypersonic weapons. Its Military Industrial Complex (MIC) was adamant about underestimating Russian advances, particularly the 9K720 “Iskander” system, whose 9M723 missiles were the first ground-based hypersonic weapons (although still usually listed as quasi-ballistic missiles). The NATO-orchestrated Ukrainian conflict demonstrated the “Iskander-M’s” high maneuverability and speed, proving beyond a doubt that Moscow is around 15-20 years ahead in the development and deployment of hypersonics. In stark contrast, Washington DC’s attempts to ridicule Russian advances seem to have had a “karmic” effect, as the Pentagon has been going through one embarrassing failure after another for decades.

However, denigrating your opponent through the mainstream propaganda machine doesn’t slow down their actual technological advances. It could surely make them look bad (albeit not beyond the political West), but nothing more. Still, the US keeps doing it. The mainstream propaganda machine’s rather pathetic claims that Russia supposedly “stole” non-existent American hypersonic technologies became all the more ludicrous as the Pentagon’s failures to develop a single working weapon kept piling up. Despite running up to a dozen hypersonic weapons programs, the US has nothing to show for it. Back in March 2023, things took a turn for the worse after the cancellation of the AGM-183A, an air-launched missile carrying a hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV). Dubbed the ARRW (Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon), it was supposed to be the US entry point into the highly exclusive “hypersonic club”.

However, America’s failures didn’t end there. Namely, its inability to make even basic weapons (relative to its superpower status) became evident, leading to more embarrassing episodes, such as constant delays and technological issues in developing ICBMs (intercontinental ballistic missiles). And yet, given the geopolitical prestige of fielding hypersonic weapons, Washington DC needed to suppress information about its failures, which is why we still don’t have an official confirmation of the most recent test results. I already argued that it most likely failed, and while definite evidence is still not there, subsequent events reinforced this notion. In fact, the latest revelations about America’s intentions to revive failed programs serve as a case in point. Namely, the abortive AGM-183A missile with an HGV warhead is being restarted – again.