Russia claims it has successfully tested hypersonic missile
 

Russia claims it has successfully tested hypersonic missile ‘which makes Western defences obsolete’ - The Independent
https://apple.news/AFuGDN6D8Rmaiuyv3Fwu7nw

4,600 mph, or 66 times the speed of sound? That makes the speed of sound about 70 mph, which would explain the noise my car makes on the motorway. It's just going transonic.

I just did the numbers.
761.2 miles per hour is the speed of sound at sea level
6.043 times the speed of sound as reported (someone can't type, I suspect)

Question: was this speed measured at sea level, or at higher altitude? I ask this due to some years ago having read an appreciation of the challenges hypersonic projectiles faced in both offensive and defensive modes.
Does anyone know the answer to where the speed measurement was made?

So - with all due respect to our Russian aerospace colleagues - they are going to field a missile with a viable, operational scramjet?
When the brightest minds elsewhere are still struggling to get a scramjet lit for any sustained period in flight (the lighting a match in a hurricane analogy)?
(Unless I'm wrong, the X-43B still holds the current hypersonic record with only several minutes scramjet powered flight at 95,000 feet).
Not only that, according to Wikipedia, this new missile is apparently entirely covered by a stealth coating during flight. That must be some incredible material, able to withstand very high heat, yet still absorb radar waves - much more-so than something like the SR-71s ferrite paint?
Perhaps even more-so than the ablative coatings on the X-15, given that this missile will presumably fly at much lower and therefore denser altitudes.
But wait a minute - what's the point of a stealth coating on an object travelling so fast and generating so much heat that it will glow like a searchlight to any infra-red sensor of any sensitivity?
If I am correct, at lower altitudes a hypersonic object would be shrouded by plasma, making telemetry very difficult, yet the Wikipedia entry boasts of telemetry exchange in flight.
It may be fast, but hypersonic?
That's at least mile a second friends.
Am I right in being a little sceptical comrades?
AFAIK the Brahmos is still the world's fastest missile... at a comparatively snail like Mach 2.8 - may be 3.0 if all conditions are right.

Maybe the molten sludge will melt its way through the target.:eek:

"Make western defences obsolete"? Hmm, didn't they claim that about the S-300, S-400, PAK-50, that madcap supersonic torpedo etc etc. Sounds like yet more Russian wishful thinking.

They're a better chance of "Making Western Elections obsolete"!

‘which makes Western defences obsolete’ - that's what the Independent said :-)


Have you ever heard of X-15? Good old grandpa stuff from late 50's....

Maybe.
But I suspect probably still faster than that missile. ;)

The Russians have invested quite a lot n stand-off missiles for a very long time - and in some areas (such as torpedoes) they have been highly innovative

I suggest we watch this one closely.........................

To be fair, some of Russia's efforts have been highly credible. Going into an S-400 MEZ is still a specialised task and some of their lower airspace weapons are plain nasty. Their big push in AAMs was fruitful, as was their big push in large stand-off weapons. They also have a brace of unique capabilities that don't have a suitable western comparator.

It is true that some of their systems are seriously pants and that some of their tactical strike capability is woeful, but the same could be said of the capabilities in my first paragraph - before they addressed them.

For all their bluster, rhetoric and noise the Russians seem quite adept at judging where their capabilities are poor and addressing them. Money and time appear to be the only obstacles to progress.

:ok:

It doesn't make all western defences obsolete. It gives Russia a temporary lead in first strike capability.

That's why we retain second strike capability - unless we get a Prime Minister who can't decide whether or not to use it.

That said, did the US's recent Tomahawk strike in Syria bypass these defences? Didn't hear of any being splashed by Syrian/Russian AD. I wouldn't be surprised if the Yanks routed a few through the S-400 MEZ just to see what happened...

Now - in contrast - as a result of statements from Marillyn Hewson at a LockMart media day - here is a much more thoughtful story on the state of the art in hypersonics.
Note the aggressive timeline and the words "...we are now producing..."
In other words, they're actually building it.

EDIT here is a more detailed piece noting the SR-72 is expected to be F-22 sized with a demonstrator flying as early as next year.

Yes, its an entirely imaginary missile.

It doesn't exist.

I think the vehicle itself exists and was flown, but it is probably a hypersonic glide vehicle with maneuvering capability, and does not use a scramjet for propulsion. It is accelerated to hypersonic velocity by a rocket booster, and then separates from the booster and glides to its destination.

The Boeing X-51 Waverider is the most successful example (so far) of a hypersonic air vehicle using a scramjet for propulsion. It was air dropped from a B-52 and accelerated to just over mach 4 by a solid rocket booster. After separating from the booster the scramjet propelled the vehicle to a speed near mach 6 for a couple minutes.

What Russia seems to be claiming is that their hypersonic vehicle has improved maneuvering capability in the glide phase of flight. However, if it requires a rocket booster to accelerate the glide vehicle to hypersonic velocity, it will still be vulnerable to intercept during the boost phase.