Hypersonic bomber

[arcticpenguin]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3035332.stm

The United States is planning to build an unmanned hypersonic aircraft capable of striking any target in the world within two hours.
...
The initial description of the concept - called the "reusable hypersonic cruise vehicle" (HCV) - has recently been placed on the website of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa), the central research and development organisation of the Pentagon.
...
he idea is that the HCV would take off from a conventional airfield in the continental United States carrying a 12,000 pound (5,500 kilogram) payload.

This payload would be made up from a variety of munitions, including cruise missiles and a new "glide bomb" dropped from space, called a Common Aero Vehicle (Cav).
...The HCV air/spacecraft could be operational by 2025.

1) DARPA works on futuristic stuff all the time. Is it really fair to say the U.S. plans to build this, or is it just an advanced concept?

2) The political fallout from this could be nasty. I would imagine China, Russia, etc would not be thrilled to see this go into operation.

3) I'm sure it will be a very expensive way to deliver a single bomb.

 

[aerocontrols]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3035332.stm


1) DARPA works on futuristic stuff all the time. Is it really fair to say the U.S. plans to build this, or is it just an advanced concept?

2) The political fallout from this could be nasty. I would imagine China, Russia, etc would not be thrilled to see this go into operation.

3) I'm sure it will be a very expensive way to deliver a single bomb.

Your three points seem right-on to me.

This is just DARPA trying to get some defense money to do hypersonic research. I imagine that they will get that money, that the research will not develop into a weapon, but rather will transition to a shuttle replacement, and that the $3 billion (or whatever) spent on this project will be tacked on to the 'US total defense budget' so that next year the BBC can point out how much bigger our defense budget is than the next 450 countries combined.

MattJ

 

[Agammamon]

It should be cheaper than a single use hypersonic delivery vehicle. It sounds like something the AF will love but wouldn't be a whole lot of use to anyone else. Meanwhile the AF is considering dropping great planes like the A-10.

 

[LCBOY]

If the US planes to develop this plane why publicize it? Shouldn't this be classified? It would be an incredible advantage in war to have this plane and no one knows about. The atomic bomb, SR-71, F-117 were all top secret for many years until they were operational. Just a thought...

 

[aerocontrols]

If the US planes to develop this plane why publicize it? Shouldn't this be classified? It would be an incredible advantage in war to have this plane and no one knows about. The atomic bomb, SR-71, F-117 were all top secret for many years until they were operational. Just a thought...

When was the Valkyrie declassified? It could just be my mind playing tricks on me, but it seems like one of the prototypes was lost in an accident that had to do with trying to take a publicity picture. In any case, my point would be that not all planes are secret. (JSF, for instance) Or the Boeing UCAV, which is supposed to be going into production soon (or whatever they're calling the finished product).

We already have one-use hypersonic delivery vehicles, though. We call them ICBMs. I wonder what would have happened had we hit Tikrit with an ICBM launched out of Nevada loaded up with good old conventional explosives?

MattJ

 

[Drifterman]

BBC Online Headline: The United States is planning to build an unmanned hypersonic aircraft capable of striking any target in the world within two hours.

That has got to be the fastest development/production schedule ever!

Seriously, though: Will this mean an end to U.S. Airbases in the UK? If so, I am ecstatic. We will be free of the occupying forces

There is absolutely no need for U.S. Airbases on British soil. I resent them. What on Earth are they there for - these islands of extraterritoriality? Outposts of Empire they are.

If this HCV works - excellent!

 

[a_unique_person]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3035332.stm


1) DARPA works on futuristic stuff all the time. Is it really fair to say the U.S. plans to build this, or is it just an advanced concept?

2) The political fallout from this could be nasty. I would imagine China, Russia, etc would not be thrilled to see this go into operation.

3) I'm sure it will be a very expensive way to deliver a single bomb.

So why is the US building new generation tactical nukes and fighters? Is there an enemy out there we don't know about that has new generation fighters?

 

[Agammamon]

If the US planes to develop this plane why publicize it? Shouldn't this be classified? It would be an incredible advantage in war to have this plane and no one knows about. The atomic bomb, SR-71, F-117 were all top secret for many years until they were operational. Just a thought...

In the immortal word of Dr. Strangelove ". . . but the... whole point of the doomsday machine... is lost... if you keep it a secret . . "

If an enemy doesn't know you have a capability you can't use that capability as a deterrent.

The Us is building a new gen of weapon systems because, while its true that none of our enemies have current generation tech, if we don't advance they will catch up.

 

[a_unique_person]

In the immortal word of Dr. Strangelove ". . . but the... whole point of the doomsday machine... is lost... if you keep it a secret . . "

If an enemy doesn't know you have a capability you can't use that capability as a deterrent.

The Us is building a new gen of weapon systems because, while its true that none of our enemies have current generation tech, if we don't advance they will catch up.

It is a vicious circle. Because the US is developing the most advanced weapons systems in the world, other countries become terrified that they will be vulnerable to any whim that US policy produces. There is a saying, when the US has a sniffle, the rest of the world suffers the flu.