---
title: "US Air Force Research Ramping up Program to Mature Hypersonic Weapon Technologies"
description: "U.S. Air Force researchers are moving forward with a program to develop a hypersonic munition able to attack and destroy targets quickly over long distances."
date: "2015-05-17"
modified: "2015-05-17"
authors:
  - name: "Jason Hudson"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jasonh"
url: "https://futurism.com/us-air-force-research-ramping-up-program-to-mature-hypersonic-weapon-technologies"
categories:
  - "Future Society"
---

# US Air Force Research Ramping up Program to Mature Hypersonic Weapon Technologies

![Default Futurism featured image](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Futurism-Filler-Image.jpg>)

- The overall program includes two demonstrations for an air-breathing vehicle and a boost-glide vehicle that focus on near-term enabling technologies that require flight testing.
- High Speed Strike Weapon (HSSW) is a Lockheed Martin Skunk Works concept under which the company plans to demonstrate hypersonic flight and to provide the basis for future hypersonic programmes, including both expendable missiles and reusable aircraft.
- They want maturing technologies in six areas: modeling, simulation, and analysis (MS and A); ordinance; guidance navigation and control and airframe; propulsion; materials and structures and manufacturing; and conceptual design and systems integration.