The U.S. Air Force recently announced the appearance of a B-183 bomber carrying an AGM-52A hypersonic missile. The American "Aviator" said on the 2nd, "This is the first time that the United States has deployed a hypersonic missile so close to China." ”
The latest set of AGM-183A hypersonic missiles was allegedly taken during the "Hypersonic Familiarization Training" conducted in ** on February 27, and one of the ** photos also clearly shows the missile's serial number AR-AUR-005, indicating that it is a live ammunition rather than a model or training projectile. The missile is mounted under the wing of the B-52 strategic bomber for use by the bomber task force deployed in **. The report mentions that the U.S. Air Force refused to confirm whether it will conduct a live-fire test from **, "such a test would be a show of force in the Pacific region and send a signal to potential adversaries, especially China, as well as allies of the United States." The Aviator also mentions that because of its strategic position in the Indo-Pacific region, "this is the first time that the United States has deployed hypersonic speed so close to China."
India's "Eurasian Times" said on the 2nd that a report released by the U.S. Congressional Budget Office in January 2023 estimated that the average unit price of AGM-183A could be between $14.9 million and $17.5 million. For comparison, the cost of the American Tomahawk land-attack cruise missile is about $2.5 million. According to the report, the B-52 bomber and the hypersonic missile it carried showed that it was still the core of high-end war operations around the US Pacific Theater. "The location and existing facilities mean that while the U.S. military is advancing the distributed warfare concept, it remains a central hub for deployments in the region and a major facility supporting the U.S. military's long-range bombing operations in the Pacific."
The AGM-183A missile, known as the "air-launched hypersonic missile" of the United States, is a remarkable work in the field of military technology in recent years. It combines a solid-fuel accelerator and a hypersonic gliding warhead to demonstrate unprecedented speed and maneuverability. The missile was carried from under the wing of the B-52H bomber and was boosted by a solid rocket booster to reach a predetermined speed of Mach 5 and fly a range of up to 1,000 miles.
It is generally believed that the United States is relatively backward in hypersonic speed, and there is no finished product that can be deployed in real combat. In an interview, a spokesman for the US Air Force said only that "AGM-183A is currently at the stage of development tests, three of the four planned test launches have been completed, but it has not yet been decided on mass production." "The deployment of the US military this time is more symbolic than practical, and it is far less secure than the American phenomenon. Today's cheap UAVs can easily reach more than 6,000 kilometers, and the actual combat effect may be much stronger than the combination of B-52H bomber and AGM-183A.