AGM-183A ARRW
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The AGM-183 ARRW ("Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon") is a
hypersonic In aerodynamics, a hypersonic speed is one that exceeds five times the speed of sound, often stated as starting at speeds of Mach 5 and above. The precise Mach number at which a craft can be said to be flying at hypersonic speed varies, since i ...
air-to-ground ballistic missile planned for use by the
United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
. Developed by
Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American Arms industry, defense and aerospace manufacturer with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta on March 15, 1995. It is headquartered in North ...
, the
boost-glide Non-ballistic atmospheric entry is a class of atmospheric entry trajectories that follow a non-ballistic trajectory by employing aerodynamic lift in the high upper atmosphere. It includes trajectories such as skip and glide. Skip is a flight tr ...
vehicle is propelled to a maximum speed of more than
Mach The Mach number (M or Ma), often only Mach, (; ) is a dimensionless quantity in fluid dynamics representing the ratio of flow velocity past a Boundary (thermodynamic), boundary to the local speed of sound. It is named after the Austrian physi ...
5 by a rocket motor before
gliding Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sports, air sport in which pilots fly glider aircraft, unpowered aircraft known as Glider (sailplane), gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmospher ...
toward its target. The program was cancelled in March 2023 after multiple failed tests. The program continued despite the cancellation and was announced in late 2023 to still be in development following additional, undisclosed testing, but in 2024 it was announced that in the fiscal year 2025 budget, no funding would be provided for procurement or further research and development.


History


Development and acquisition

In August 2018, the U.S. Air Force awarded a $480 million contract to
Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American Arms industry, defense and aerospace manufacturer with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta on March 15, 1995. It is headquartered in North ...
for the development of an air-launched hypersonic weapon. The resulting missile, the AGM-183A ARRW ("Arrow"), underwent an initial captive carry flight test aboard a
U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its origins to 1 ...
B-52 The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Ai ...
in June 2019. In February 2020, the
Trump Administration Presidency of Donald Trump may refer to: * First presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration from 2017 to 2021 * Second presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration since 2025 See also * ...
proposed a 23% increase in funding for hypersonic weapons, and the same month, the
U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its origins to 1 ...
announced it had decided to move forward with acquisition of the AGM-183A. In March 2020,
Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering The under secretary of defense for research and engineering, abbreviated USD (R&E), is a senior official of the United States Department of Defense. The USD (R&E) is charged with the development and oversight of technology strategy for the DoD. ...
Michael D. Griffin stated that the United States was "close at hand" to having a hypersonic boost-glide weapon ready to field. In early 2023, the
Congressional Budget Office The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency within the United States Congress, legislative branch of the United States government that provides budget and economic information to Congress. I ...
(CBO) estimated that a production run of 300 ARRWs would have a unit cost of $14.9 million per missile and a program cost of $5.3 billion including platform integration and 20 years of sustainment. For a production run of 100, each unit would cost $18 million with a program cost of $2.2 billion.


Theorized relation to the "Super-Duper Missile"

A "Super-Duper Missile" was announced by US President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
during a press availability in the
Oval Office The Oval Office is the formal working space of the president of the United States. Part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, it is in the West Wing of the White House, in Washington, D.C. The oval room has three lar ...
on May 15, 2020. According to Trump, the weapon is 17 times faster than existing missiles in the United States arsenal; however, Kingston Reif of the
Arms Control Association The Arms Control Association is a United States–based nonpartisan membership organization founded in 1971, with the self-stated mission of "promoting public understanding of and support for effective arms control policies." The group publishes ...
believes the claim may have been a misstatement.
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
news correspondent
Nick Schifrin Nick Schifrin (born July 10, 1980) is an American journalist. He is the ''PBS NewsHour'' foreign affairs and defense correspondent. He was previously Al Jazeera America's Middle East correspondent and a correspondent for ABC News in London and i ...
has theorized that the "Super-Duper Missile" is the AGM-183A, as has the ''
China Times The ''China Times'' (, abbr. ) is a daily Chinese-language newspaper published in Taiwan and one of the most widely circulated newspapers in Taiwan. Founded in 1950, the China Times Group was acquired by food and media conglomerate Want Want, whi ...
''.


Design and performances

The AGM-183A had a claimed maximum speed of more than . The weapon used a boost-glide system, in which it was propelled to hypersonic speed by a rocket on which it was mounted before gliding toward a target. According to ''
Popular Mechanics ''Popular Mechanics'' (often abbreviated as ''PM'' or ''PopMech'') is a magazine of popular science and technology, featuring automotive, home, outdoor, electronics, science, do it yourself, and technology topics. Military topics, aviation an ...
'', the U.S. Air Force was, as of April 2020, considering using the remaining fleet of
B-1B The Rockwell B-1 Lancer is a supersonic variable-sweep wing, heavy bomber used by the United States Air Force. It has been nicknamed the "Bone" (from "B-One"). , it is one of the United States Air Force's three strategic bombers, along with th ...
bombers as AGM-183A firing platforms, with each aircraft carrying up to 31 hypersonic weapons (between ARRW and HAWC) mounted on the Common Strategic Rotary Launcher and on external pylons.


Testing

A booster flight test of ARRW took place in April 2021 at
Point Mugu Sea Range Naval Air Station Point Mugu was a United States naval air station near Oxnard, California, which operated as an independent base from 1941 to 2000, when it merged with nearby Naval Construction Battalion Center Port Hueneme to form Naval Base V ...
, off the coast of Southern
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
but did not launch successfully; this was the eighth test for ARRW. Another test in May 2021 for the ARRW's avionics, sensors and communications systems, was successful. The test did not use any of the ARRW's systems but instead used a B-52 based system. On a flight to Alaska from Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana, the B-52 was able to receive target data from over away. In July 2021, a second flight test at Point Mugu Sea Range, again being dropped from a
B-52 The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Ai ...
bomber, was a failure as the solid rocket motor failed to ignite. On December 15, 2021, the third flight test failed to launch as well. On March 9, 2022, Congress halved funding for ARRW and transferred the balance to ARRW's R&D account to allow for further testing, which puts the procurement contract at risk. On May 14, 2022, the 419th Flight Test Squadron and the Global Power Bomber Combined Test Force at
Edwards Air Force Base Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force installation in California. Most of the base sits in Kern County, California, Kern County, but its eastern end is in San Bernardino County, California, San Bernardino County and a souther ...
conducted the first successful test of the ARRW off the coast of Southern California. The weapon demonstrated separation from the
B-52H Stratofortress The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic aircraft, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the ...
. Its booster ignited and burned for the expected duration, and the weapon was able to achieve speeds greater than . The USAF conducted another successful test of the missile on July 12, 2022. The USAF completed the first All-Up-Round (AUR) test on December 9, 2022. This test included both the booster and hypersonic glide vehicle. The USAF
412th Test Wing The 412th Test Wing (412 TW) is a wing of the United States Air Force, assigned to the Air Force Test Center at Edwards Air Force Base, California. Overview The 412th Test Wing plans, conducts, analyzes, and reports on all flight and ground tes ...
used a B-52H Stratofortress, at Edwards Air Force Base. Test was deemed a success, test range sensors malfunctioned, preventing the Air Force from fully knowing whether the glide vehicle and warhead performed as intended in the terminal flight phase. On March 13, 2023, the United States Air Force conducted a hypersonic test-launch of an operational AGM-183A prototype from a Boeing B-52H Stratofortress by the
412th Test Wing The 412th Test Wing (412 TW) is a wing of the United States Air Force, assigned to the Air Force Test Center at Edwards Air Force Base, California. Overview The 412th Test Wing plans, conducts, analyzes, and reports on all flight and ground tes ...
located at Edwards Air Force Base in California. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said the test had failed. On August 19, 2023, the Air Force conducted another test of the ARRW, and said it had "gained valuable new insights into the capabilities" of ARRW. On October 12, 2023, the Air Force conducted another test of the ARRW, and said it had "gained valuable new insights into the capabilities of this new, cutting-edge technology". On November 15, 2023, Lockheed Martin announced that the program was at a point where the company and its suppliers were ready for low-rate manufacture following breakthroughs in development. On February 28, 2024,
Andersen Air Force Base Andersen Air Force Base (Andersen AFB, AAFB) is a United States Air Force base located primarily within the village of Yigo in the United States territory of Guam. The host unit at Andersen AFB is the 36th Wing (36 WG), assigned to the Pacif ...
released pictures of a live AGM-183A carried by a B-52 bomber as part of a training event. On March 17, 2024, the USAF conducted its final planned end-to-end test launch of the AGM-183A, successfully launching one out of a B-52 bomber taking off from Andersen Air Force Base. According to a USAF statement issued on 20 March. “The Air Force gained valuable insights into the capabilities of this technology,” the statement added without giving further details, including whether the test was deemed a success.


Cancellation

On March 29, 2023, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, Andrew Hunter told the House Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee, a committee responsible for providing oversight for military ammunition, acquisition, and aviation programs, that the AGM-183A program would not proceed, although the ARRW program's last two all-up round test flights would proceed in order to collect data to help with future hypersonic programs. In the Fiscal Year 2025 budget, released March 11, 2024, no funding was provided for procurement or further research and development of the AGM-183, effectively ending the project.


See also

* *
ASN4G The ASN4G (''Air-Sol Nucléaire de 4ème Génération'') is a French thermonuclear weapon, nuclear-armed, scramjet-powered, air-launched cruise missile, air-launched hypersonic cruise missile under development by MBDA, MBDA France, assisted by th ...
- French nuclear capable air-launched cruise missile * KD-21 - Chinese air-launched ballistic missile * *
ROCKS In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks form the Earth's ...
- Israeli nuclear capable air-launched ballistic missile


References


External links


Artist's rendering of an AGM-183A in flight
{{US missiles Military research of the United States Hypersonic missiles Nuclear missiles of the United States Abandoned military rocket and missile projects of the United States