Index – Abroad – The British would set up a weapon that could be used to strike anywhere in the world in minutes

The UK is developing hypersonic missiles to catch up with China, the US and Russia by 2030. The Ministry of Defense wants the missile to be designed and manufactured in the UK and put into service by 2030, reports Sky News.

According to the paper, the plans are in the early stages and no decision has been made yet on whether the missile will be launched from land, sea or air.

Hypersonic is the name given to any flying object that can accelerate to at least five times the speed of sound, i.e. to a speed of Mach 5, and with the appropriate use of technology, weapons can be created that can be used anywhere in the world in minutes a blow can be struck without anyone being able to prepare for it.

Ballistic weapons can also reach hypersonic speeds, but the difference lies in maneuverability – ballistic weapons usually travel on a fixed trajectory, but hypersonic weapons can change their trajectory after launch, making them difficult to destroy.

According to the report, Britain plans to equip its armed forces with self-developed hypersonic cruise missiles by the end of the decade. They say military leaders are under pressure to catch up with China, Russia and the United States in developing a weapon capable of flying at speeds greater than Mach 5.

Earlier, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak promised that by 2030, 2.5 percent of the gross domestic product would be spent on defense.

The hypersonic weapons race

The main players in the hypersonic weapons race are the United States, Russia and China, but other countries such as North Korea also claim to have tested hypersonic weapons.

The development of hypersonic capabilities is part of the second pillar of AUKUS, the defense and security pact between the UK, Australia and the US.

Last month, the United States tested a hypersonic cruise missile near an atoll in the Marshall Islands (that is, near a ring-shaped island made of coral reefs), sending a message to its Pacific rival China. This was the country’s graduate in recent years last test of this kind.

A spokesman for the British Ministry of Defense did not elaborate on the development of Britain’s hypersonic missile capability, citing national security, but confirmed that “hypersonic technologies in this direction” are being sought.