U.S. Air Force Posts, Then Deletes Hypersonic Weapons, ICBM Research

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A request for a proposal surrounding U.S. Air Force research into hypersonic glide technology research that was accidentally posted to a nuclear weapon agency website Aug. 12 has been pulled. The correction has prompted questions over what was supposed to be kept quiet and whether the original posting violated a Pentagon policy violation. Here’s what we know about the actions taken.

Business Journals

Aviation Week reported on Tuesday that the proposal, posted on the website beta.sam.gov for five days, requested ideas for upgrading intercontinental ballistics missiles (ICBMs). Bidders had to include designs to incorporate a “modular open architecture,” a strategy to improve the integration of components from different suppliers into the final product. One category included a proposal for a thermal protection system designed to cool down a hypersonic glide vehicle while in flight.

The proposal was posted by the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center, suggesting that the agency is researching the nuclear capabilities of hypersonic glide weapons, despite a Pentagon policy that forbids such an option. The policy also applies to three hypersonic glide prototype projects in progress including an AGM-183A recently tested by the Air Force and an Army second-generation missile that would fly five times the speed of sound.

The Drive

“Our entire hypersonic portfolio is based on delivering conventional warheads,” declared Mike White, the Pentagon’s assistant director of defense research and engineering for hypersonic weapons at a March 2 media conference.

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Despite that declaration, Aviation Week suggested that the request for proposal was yanked because it contained information that partners in the Air Force nuclear weapons supply chain didn’t want to be publicly announced. The document was also tagged for official use only, although the information was not declared confidential. Additionally, the content made no references to nuclear weapons.

Military Embedded Systems

Aviation Week didn’t disclose what was in the proposal to cause the Air Force to backpedal, but one seed of speculation might have to do with that cryptic “modular open architecture” phrase. According to one Air Force general, modular open architecture could enable the addition of technology like nuclear capabilities to

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By: Gene Kosowan
Title: U.S. Air Force Posts, Then Deletes Hypersonic Weapons, ICBM Research
Sourced From: www.hotcars.com/u-s-air-force-posts-deletes-hypersonic-weapons-icbm-research/
Published Date: Sat, 22 Aug 2020 13:00:05 GMT

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