Raytheon and Northrop Grumman begin development of the HACM hypersonic missile
AGM-183A ARRW missile under the wing of B-52H. Future HACM will be smaller and lighter
The American program for the development of a promising hypersonic missile HACM is entering a new stage. The Pentagon studied the proposed projects from two development teams and chose the more successful one. The option will be further developed aviation missiles from Raytheon and Northorp Grumman. Such ammunition should enter service in 2027.
During development
The launch of the new HACM (Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile) program was announced in October 2020, i.e. at the beginning of fiscal year 2021. In the future, this project was repeatedly mentioned in various documents and statements. Thanks to this, some details of a technical and other nature became known.
In 2020-21 the first competitive stage of the program began, in which two preliminary projects participated. The first was developed by Raytheon Missile & Defense and Northrop Grumman, and the second was offered by Boeing and Lockheed Martin. At the same time, the program received the necessary funding. So, in FY2022. More than $200 million was allocated for both projects and related work.
Last spring, it became known that the competitive stage was nearing its end. Until the end of the current fiscal year (by early October), the Pentagon was going to choose a winner. The companies that developed this project were to receive a contract for a full-fledged design, followed by testing and launching the production of a new rocket.
New stages
The winner of the HACM competitive stage became known on September 23rd. Based on the results of the comparison, the customer chose a project from Raytheon and Northrop Grumman. They were given a contract to continue the work. The next stage of the project was estimated at $985 million and will continue for several more years.
F-15EX - the future carrier of a hypersonic missile
Raytheon's management has named the reason for its success. Her project was created taking into account existing developments and with an eye to the desired result. At the same time, it was possible to actually abandon the technology demonstration stage and immediately proceed to the creation of a workable design. This would save time and effort, which interested the customer.
In the near future, Raytheon and Northrop Grumman should complete the design and move on to testing prototype missiles. Flights are scheduled for next year with at least HACM prototypes. Then, several years will be spent on full-fledged flight tests, design refinement, integration with military aviation weapons systems, etc.
According to current plans, the HACM missile will be adopted by the Air Force and will begin to be deployed in units in 2027. By this time, full-fledged production will be launched. It will involve branches of development companies and other subcontractors from 14 states.
Design features
The Pentagon and development companies are not yet ready to show the finished HACM missile, but they have repeatedly talked about it. The main plans for this project and the key features of the future product are already known. Probably more details will be revealed in the future. At the same time, fundamental innovations will not be introduced, and the finished rocket will turn out to be the same as it has already been described.
As the name implies, the goal of the HACM project is to create an air-launched cruise missile with hypersonic flight speed. It is intended for tactical and long-range aircraft and will be used as a means of destroying ground or surface targets.
F-15EX with missiles on an external sling. You can imagine the limiting dimensions of HACM
Dimensions and weight of the new weapons not named yet. At the same time, it was mentioned that the HACM will be smaller and lighter than the AGM-183A ARRW missile. One of the carriers of this missile will be the F-15EX fighter-bomber. This allows you to represent the allowable dimensions and weight of the product. In addition, HACM will be included in the ammunition load of B-52H bombers. Such an aircraft will receive new beam holders for 20 missiles.
HACM will receive a ramjet engine designed to operate at hypersonic speeds. Also, you will probably need an accelerating solid propellant stage. The customer chose the scramjet because it allows to obtain a high flight speed, occupies a limited volume inside the rocket and simplifies the placement of the necessary fuel supply.
The propulsion system for HACM is being developed by Northrop Grumman based on developments from the X-43 and X-51 experimental projects. It is reported that this approach makes it possible to obtain all the required characteristics without unjustified rise in cost and delay in development.
The exact flight performance has not yet been named. It was reported that in terms of flight range, HACM would not be inferior to the ARRW product, which, as far as is known, should fly 1600 km. The speed of the new rocket, as follows from its definition, will exceed 5 M. At the same time, it will pass part of the trajectory with the help of a scramjet, and the final section will be overcome due to the accumulated energy.
It is not known what control equipment a promising missile will receive, and different options are possible. It can be equipped with an inertial and satellite navigation system to hit targets with known coordinates. Also, the use of a full-fledged homing head capable of detecting and tracking the target cannot be ruled out.
First F-15EX under construction
The type of warhead remains unknown. Probably, a high-explosive fragmentation warhead will be used. Its dimensions, weight and power will be determined by the parameters of the rocket. In this case, a significant contribution to the overall impact on the target will be made by the kinetic energy of the falling rocket.
tactical tool
Thus, in the medium term, the US Air Force plans to receive another sample of hypersonic missile weapons. At the same time, the HACM program has several interesting features that distinguish it from other projects of this kind. These differences will give the new missile and the Air Force as a whole a number of new capabilities.
For the first time in American practice, an aviation hypersonic missile of reduced dimensions is being developed, compatible with tactical aircraft. This means that not only long-range bombers or ground-based systems will be able to use all the advantages of such weapons.
The strengths of hypersonic missiles are well known. Thus, the highest flight speed allows you to drastically reduce the flight time from the launch point to the target. This makes timely detection, reaction and interception difficult - and increases the effectiveness of the strike. In addition, it becomes possible to increase the flight range and withdraw the launch lines from the enemy's kill zone.
A hypersonic missile in flight is characterized by high kinetic energy, which in itself can be a damaging factor. This allows you to abandon the traditional warhead or increase its impact on the target. In addition, the ability to break through obstacles, etc., is improved.
The F-15EX fighter-bomber will be used as the main carrier of the HACM missiles. This aircraft retains its original qualities and capabilities, and the advent of hypersonic ammunition will increase its combat potential. The upgraded fighter will turn into a more effective strike system.
According to current plans, the production of the F-15EX will continue at least until the early thirties. At least 144 of these aircraft will be produced. This will allow several squadrons of the Air Force to be re-equipped, and each of them will be able to use new hypersonic weapons.
Based on the results of the implementation of the F-15EX and HACM projects, tactical aviation will have a new strike complex with special combat capabilities at its disposal. At the same time, such a complex will be massive, which will give certain advantages of an operational and practical nature. F-15EX aircraft with HACM missiles can be simultaneously deployed to different bases to control certain areas.
Obviously, any projects in the field of hypersonic weapons are complex, and their implementation may encounter problems, be delayed, etc. However, in the case of HACM, developers are still optimistic. They claim that this project is based on available technologies and components, and this will allow you to complete all the work without any difficulty.
Big plans
The HACM program moving to the next stage of development is of great interest. Despite the lack of serious success in other projects, the Pentagon is launching the development of another hypersonic missile system. In this case, we are talking about weapons with a number of important features that can seriously affect the combat capabilities of the Air Force.
The design, testing and implementation of a new missile now takes about five years. Developers are optimistic and talk about the availability of the necessary developments and their ability to complete the tasks in a timely manner. How realistic such promises are will become known in a few years.
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