US confirms test flight of China’s hypersonic missile around globe in July

TIL Desk/World/Washington/ China might one day be able to launch a surprise nuclear attack on the United States, the second highest-ranking American military officer has warned as he shed new details of Beijing’s hypersonic weapons test in July, which sent a missile around the world at more than five times the speed of sound.

“They launched a long-range missile,” General John Hyten, the vice chairman of the joint chiefs of staff told while commenting on China’s hypersonic weapons test on July 27. “It went around the world, dropped off a hypersonic glide vehicle that glided all the way back to China, that impacted a target in China,” he said on Tuesday.

When asked if the missile hit the target, Hyten said, “Close enough.” China has denied that it carried out a hypersonic missile test, saying it was testing a reusable spacecraft. Though the Chinese weapon missed its target by several kilometres, according to reports, the test marked the first time any country had sent a hypersonic weapon fully around the Earth.

Hypersonic weapons travel at more than five times the speed of sound, making it difficult for radars to detect. Combined with hundreds of new missile silos China is building, Hyten believes China could one day have the capability to launch a surprise nuclear attack on the US.