Britain plans to equip its armed forces with a hypersonic cruise missile by the end of the decade, according to a report.
Military leaders are under pressure to catch up with China, Russia and the United States in developing a weapon capable of flying at speeds above Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound, according to the Sunday Telegraph.
The Ministry of Defense wants the missile to be designed and built in the UK and enter service by 2030.
Plans are in their early stages, the newspaper reported, although no decision has been made on whether the missile will be launched from land, sea or air.
This comes after the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged to spend 2.5% of his gross domestic product on defense by 2030.
Ballistic weapons can also reach hypersonic speeds, but the difference lies in maneuverability: ballistic weapons generally have fixed trajectories, but the trajectory of a hypersonic weapon can be changed after launch, making it difficult to destroy.
The United States, Russia and China are the main players in the hypersonic arms race, but other countries, such as North Korea, claim to have tested hypersonic weapons.
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The development of hypersonic capabilities is part of the second pillar of AUKUS – a defense and security pact between the UK, Australia and the United States.
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Last month, the United States tested a hypersonic cruise missile on an atoll in the Marshall Islands in a message to its Pacific rival China. It is the latest in a series of hypersonic weapons tests the country has carried out in recent years.
A Ministry of Defense spokesperson would not comment in detail on the development of the UK’s hypersonic missile capability, citing national security, but confirmed that “hypersonic technologies aimed at further developing the Kingdom’s sovereign advanced capabilities -Uni” were under study.
“We continue to invest in our equipment to meet current and future threats,” they added.
