Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States have reached a milestone agreement to accelerate the testing of hypersonic vehicles and related technologies. Under AUKUS Pillar II, the Hypersonic Flight Test and Experimentation (HyFliTE) Project Arrangement (PA) will enable the three nations to accelerate development, testing and evaluation of innovative hypersonic systems.
HyFliTE represents new heights of collaboration amongst AUKUS partners through shared testing facilities and pooling our deep collective technical expertise. This development follows the AUKUS Defence Ministers’ Meeting on 26 September where it was announced that the three nations were increasing their collective ability to develop and deliver offensive and defensive hypersonic technologies under Pillar II.
Hypersonic weapons are long-range strike missiles that can travel five times the speed of sound. They could be launched from the land, sea, or air. The PA will incorporate existing national efforts, including multiple test flights across all nations, giving the AUKUS effort on hypersonics a strong boost. These flight tests will accelerate the development of hypersonic concepts and critical enabling technologies.
Development of hypersonic technology is a key Defence priority, identified in the 2024 National Defence Strategy. It is a capability that can hold time critical and heavily defended targets at risk from increased ranges, enhancing the survivability of the Australian Defence Force against potential threats.
“This agreement will accelerate Australia’s sovereign ability to develop and deliver offensive and defensive hypersonic technologies – through a robust testing and experimentation campaign under AUKUS Pillar II,” Chief Defence Scientist, Professor Tanya Monro AC, said. “HyFliTE will leverage our collective expertise and innovation enterprises to deliver hypersonic capabilities at pace.”
Australia remains committed to its domestic and international legal obligations as it pursues hypersonic technologies.
“We are increasing our collective ability to develop and deliver offensive and defensive hypersonic technologies through a robust series of trilateral tests and experiments that will accelerate the development of hypersonic concepts and critical enabling technologies,” said Heidi Shyu, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering.
Existing national efforts will be woven together through the PA, which includes up to six trilateral flight test campaigns to occur by 2028 with a total funding pool of US$252 million. These campaigns seek to increase the pace of testing and take advantage of combined partner resources, test facilities, and substantial experience conducting similar campaigns.
“Collaborative efforts are accelerating the development of underpinning enabling technologies, such as high temperature materials, advanced propulsion systems, and guidance and control,” said Shyu. “Each of these technologies is integral to the performance of hypersonic weapon systems and provides enhanced operational capability.”
HyFliTE will enable the three nations to benefit from the collective expertise of the partners. HyFliTE also supports integrated deterrence, a centrepiece of the trilateral agreement, as well as trilateral requirements for the development and delivery of hypersonic weapon systems.
“The U.S. DoD is committed to working closely with the Australian Department of Defence and the UK MOD to further the pursuit of common and consistent objectives for affordable and responsive flight testing of hypersonic technologies and concepts,” added Shyu.
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