Chinese hypersonic test included path-breaking second missile launch, say US reports
- Neither the US nor Russia has shown the same ability, which requires launching a missile from a parent vehicle travelling five times the speed of sound
- During the weapon test in July, the hypersonic missile released a separate missile that rocketed away, falling harmlessly into the South China Sea
China’s test of a globe-circling hypersonic weapon in July included the unprecedented launch of a separate missile from the ultra-high-speed vehicle, according to the Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal.
The test showed China’s development of its strategic, nuclear-capable weapons as more advanced than any had thought, surprising Pentagon officials, the two newspapers said.
Neither the United States nor Russia has shown the same ability, which requires launching a missile from a parent vehicle travelling five times the speed of sound.
The Financial Times, which first reported the test over the weekend, said US military experts are trying to understand how China mastered the technology, which puts them in advance of rivals in the hypersonic arms race.
02:06
Chinese hypersonic weapons test ‘has all of our attention’, US General Mark Milley says
The Wall Street Journal confirmed the report on Monday.
The July 27 Chinese hypersonic test alone had already stunned Western officials.