U.S. Hypersonic Missile Program Faces Setbacks: Production Halved, Costs Soar
Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, July 20 - The U.S. Government Accountability Office, a congressional agency, recently released a report revealing a series of "significant issues" with the U.S. military's hypersonic missile program known as "Conventional Prompt Strike," including halved production capacity, rising costs, and slow progress.
The report shows that the "Conventional Prompt Strike" program, with Lockheed Martin as the prime contractor, has encountered problems in component supply, production capacity, and technology, currently producing a maximum of 6 to 7 missiles per year, which is about half of the original plan of 12 missiles.
The report points out that the operational instructions prepared by the company are "too complex for ordinary workers." These instructions are written in the form of engineering specifications and are provided to recent high school graduates or vocational school students. Navy officials responsible for overseeing production believe that "it is unrealistic to expect these workers to understand (these operational instructions)."
While production progress is slow, costs are also rising significantly. The U.S. Navy estimated in 2020 that 262 missiles would cost $31 billion, but this has now risen to $41 billion for 224 missiles. The report states that Lockheed Martin "must address significant production issues to advance the program at the expected speed and cost."
The hypersonic missiles of the "Conventional Prompt Strike" program will be equipped on the U.S. Navy's Zumwalt-class destroyers. This class of destroyers is currently undergoing the necessary modifications. However, the Government Accountability Office stated in the same report that as of January this year, the modernization work on the first Zumwalt-class destroyer was 94% complete, but the progress is 24 months behind the original schedule. Due to issues with "funding and testing," the hypersonic missile test launches originally planned to begin in 2025 on this ship have been postponed to 2027. (Hui Xiaoshuang)
The U.S. hypersonic missile program, led by Lockheed Martin, is experiencing significant production and cost challenges, with output reduced to 6-7 missiles annually. The program's costs have escalated from $31 billion to $41 billion for fewer missiles, and testing has been delayed to 2027. The modernization of the Zumwalt-class destroyer is also behind schedule, impacting the deployment of these missiles.
- The hypersonic missile program's production capacity has been halved.
- Costs for the missile program have increased significantly, from $31 billion for 262 missiles to $41 billion for 224 missiles.
- The first Zumwalt-class destroyer's modernization is 94% complete but is 24 months behind schedule.
- The hypersonic missile tests originally planned for 2025 have been postponed to 2027 due to funding and testing issues.
- Lockheed Martin is the main contractor for the hypersonic missile program.