In order to hunt down Osama bin Laden and other high-value targets, the U.S. Air Force is developing a new "hypersonic missile" that could hit a target in minutes instead of hours.
According to a report from Thursday's The Christian Science Monitor, the Air Force is developing a "hypersonic" engine designed to fly bombs at Mach 6.5 speed, or more than 6,500 km per hour, allowing commanders a chance to conduct long-range strikes on targets in a fraction of the time it takes now.
The program, known as the X-51A scramjet, could be used as a "manhunter" in Afghanistan or Iraq -- or as a deterrent against more conventional enemies, the report said.
Unlike a rocket, which requires its own oxygen stored in heavy tanks, a scramjet engine mixes the oxygen already in the air with fuel at such a high rate that it can propel itself faster than anything else that can fly long distances within the atmosphere.
Strap on a warhead, and the United States will have a unique new weapon, analysts and military officials said.
It sounds ideal, but there is still a long way before such a missile could be made.
An initial flight test could be held sometime in 2009 and the platform wouldn't be operational for at least another eight years or so.
Source: Xinhua
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