PARIS – Northrop Grumman will serve as the scramjet combustor provider for Raytheon’s planned air-breathing hypersonic weapon, which will be tested under a U.S. Air Force and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) contract to accelerate the development of this type of munition. AIN Online reports. Continue reading original article
The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:
19 June 2019 -- The companies, which announced the partnership Tuesday at the Paris Air Show, part of the Air Force/DARPA Hypersonic Air-breathing Weapon Concept (HAWC) program.
The aim is to develop a cruise missile in this category by applying the scramjet propulsion expertise that Northrop has developed to Raytheon’s tactical missile experience.
A scramjet engine uses high speed to forcibly compress incoming air before combustion to produce hypersonic flight speeds, enabling the weapon to travel as quickly and effectively as possible. Hypersonic weapons—ones that travel at least Mach 5—are of great interest to militaries, largely because they can travel over further distances in a quicker timeframe, increasing the stand-off range and the chance of mission success.
John Keller, chief editor
Military & Aerospace Electronics
