Lt. Gen. David L. Mann, commander, U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, discussed the status of the Advanced Hypersonic Weapon, or AHW, program, Wednesday, before the Senate Armed Services Committee, subcommittee on strategic forces.
"Based upon the results that come from that test, we'll go ahead and, again, work closely with Office of the Secretary of Defense as to what they would like us to do, what the next steps are," Mann said.
The general told lawmakers the Army is also working with the Navy on "possible utilization of this capability."
The AHW is part of an effort to develop a conventional "Prompt Global Strike" capability. Conventional means non-nuclear. The AHW can be launched from the United States and can hit a target anywhere in the world. It can travel at speeds of Mach 5, about 3,600 mph, or higher.
MISSILE DEFENSE
Beyond offensive capabilities like the AHW, the Army is also looking at defensive capabilities against threats from other nations.
The U.S. has defensive missile capabilities at Fort Greely, Alaska, and Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. Mann said adding an additional site on the East Coast of the United States would be beneficial to America's defense capability.
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Written by C. Todd Lopez.http://www.army.mil/article/121957/Army_on_budget__on_schedule_with_hypersonic_missile_program/
Retrieved on 16 Mar 2014
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