Hypersonic missiles: UK, US, and Australia to boost defence co-operation

[Jimbuna]

Better late than never I suppose.

The UK, US, and Australia will begin co-operating on research into hypersonic weapons and how to defend against them, the government has said.

The programme will be part of the AUKUS partnership, a security pact announced by the three countries last year.

It follows the development of hypersonic missiles by China and Russia and their purported use by Russia in Ukraine last month.

Hypersonic weapons are those that exceed five times the speed of sound.

They are harder to defend against because of their speed as well as the fact they fly at low altitudes - beyond the line of sight of ground-based radars - and can manoeuvre mid-flight.

The UK does not currently possess hypersonic missiles.

The US and Australia have an existing joint programme to develop the weapons but the UK government stressed the focus of the new venture would be on defence.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-61000416

[Kapitan]

The UK defiantly needs to sort out its missile situation, especially when it comes to AShMs

Were reliant on the Harpoon which is a small subsonic missiles, any peer navy or any navy for that fact with a decent air defense suite would likely engage it easily.

I really do like the idea of the UK Australia and USA working together, the Aussies are a great bunch and hard b******ds too.
I would like to see Canada come into the mix but I think it is too beyond them implementation capability wise.

[nikimcbee]

The Senior Geordie Watch?

[Catfish]

^


US successfully tests Mach 5 hypersonic missile:

https://www.dw.com/en/us-successfull...ile/a-59333155

https://edition.cnn.com/2022/04/04/p...est/index.html


Mach 5 monster: Germany to get Dark Eagle missile – wonder if this is true though:

https://asiatimes.com/2021/11/death-...eagle-missile/



Question still is how to counter this as an ICBM, or at all

OT German tested an own development some years ago for scientific purposes/not a weapon

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by Catfish

Mach 5 monster: Germany to get Dark Eagle missile – wonder if this is true though:

https://asiatimes.com/2021/11/death-...eagle-missile/

Confirmed at least is the re-activation of that US nuclear missile unit in germany, I posted that some weeks ago. Of the Dark Eagle I have not heard anything, only that Israel and Washington have in principle approved selling their Arrow-3 system to the Germans.