US hypersonic missile program in crisis or transition?

The AGM-183 Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW) project, the US military’s counter to China and Russia’s rival, more advanced hypersonic missile programs, has received new funding despite earlier signs of cancellation due to poor test results.

This month, The War Zone reported that the US Air Force awarded defense contractor Lockheed Martin an additional US$13.4 million for the ARRW.

The report suggests the funds could be for winding down the ARRW or accelerating a related follow-on program known as the Tactical Boost Glide (TBG), signaling a possible classified evolution or adaptation of the ARRW program. The funding bump raises Lockheed Martin’s ARRW contract’s total value to over $1.3 billion.

The ARRW is a hypersonic boost-glide vehicle that employs a rocket booster to propel an unpowered glide vehicle to hypersonic speeds exceeding Mach 5, making it difficult for adversaries to detect, track and intercept.

The TBG program is a joint DARPA-Air Force effort to enable air-launched tactical range hypersonic boost-glide systems that can be launched from current platforms, according to Pentagon documents cited by The War Zone. The program will also consider traceability, compatibility and integration with the US Navy’s Vertical Launch System, it said.

The ARRW, estimated to cost between $14.9 and $17.5 million per unit, is considered crucial for countering heavily defended, high-value targets such as critical air defense and other command and control nodes, including ones housed in hardened facilities. Because of its high costs, the ARRW would only be fielded in relatively small numbers.

However, the Arms Control Association (ACA) reported in November 2023 that the ARRW faced termination in fiscal year 2024 due to