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Published- Oct 2020 Number Of Pages -110
The two important qualities that define any missile is speed and maneuverability. Speed could catch the enemy off guard and maneuverability can make it very tough for the defence system to accurately counter the missile.
Most of the recent technology developments related to Missiles has happened out of competitive pressure among the leading countries like US, China and Russia.
Most American Aircraft to aircraft missiles meant to hit other aircraft or ground targets, travel between Mach 1 and Mach 5. But now the Trump administration is pouring Multi-Billion dollars a year to augment their hypersonic missiles and defence system. US now aims to field hypersonic warfighting capabilities in the early- to mid-2020s.
There are two major types of hypersonic weapons being developed. 1. Hypersonic glide vehicle- launched from a rocket, Later glides to a target, at high speed to evade interception. 2.Hypersonic cruise missile- it is powered by a supersonic combustion ramjet, allowing the missile to fly and manoeuvre at lower altitudes.
The US spending on Hypersonic weapons has grown to $3.4 Billion in 2020 as compared to $800 Million in 2017 and for 2021 it is expected to be $3.6 Billion.
China on the other hand is also aggressively pursuing hypersonic missiles. It has already conducted multiple successful tests of the DF-17- a medium-range(1,600-2,400kms) ballistic missile designed to launch hypersonic glide vehicles.
In Dec 2019- Russia`s Avangard hypersonic glide vehicle, which can fly at Mach 27 became operational. It has already been fitted to Soviet-built intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) and in the future could be fitted to the more powerful and still being developed Sarmat (also an ICBM).
Japan’s Defense Ministry is also planning to incorporate an antiship capability on its future hypersonic missiles. The Japan Ministry of Defense plans to spend $226M on hypersonic research in 2020.
Feb 2021- U.S., Israel to jointly develop Arrow 4 missile interceptor system, which will be part of country’s multi-layer ballistic missile shield.
Feb 2021- Iran tests new “Smart” missile with 300km strike range.
Feb 2021- China tests ballistic missile system capable of hitting targets outside of earth’s atmosphere.
Sept 2020- BrahMos missile with India-made components successfully test fired.
Sept 2020- India’s DRDO tests Hypersonic Technology Demonstration Vehicle (HSTDV). It uses indigenously developed scramjet propulsion system.
Aug 2020- US Air Force test fires Minuteman III Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM)
May 2020- South Korea test fired Hyunmoo-4, a new ballistic missile with a range of 800 km and a 2-ton payload capacity
May 2020– US successfully tested a prototype of Precision strike missile with 500km+ range and is expected to enter service in 2023
April 2020– Taiwan successfully tested the Sky Bow 3 surface-to-air missile and the Yun Feng land-attack cruise missile (1,500+ km range)
April 2020– Ukraine’s Luch Design Bureau successfully tested its Neptune antiship missile. The missile weighs 670 kg and has a maximum range of 280 km
April 2020– Pakistan’s navy tested an indigenously developed antiship/land-attack cruise missile
US is the world`s biggest spender on development of new missiles whereas UAE and Saudi Arabia, the two key allies with ~$90 Billion in cumulative annual defence spending are also reliant on US for new missile technologies.
Iran has a comparatively lower defense budget of $16-$17 Billion but due to a variety of economic sanctions, Iran’s ability to buy advanced weaponry abroad has dwindled. Iran still has 1980s era fighter jets as compared to much advanced fighter jets of its neighbours. Therefore, Iran has invested heavily into missile development.
The global Military Missile market is estimated at $XX B in 2022 and expected to grow at –% CAGR till 2030
42 out of top 100 defence contractors by Revenue belong to US and thus it is no surprise that the global Military missiles market is dominated by American companies.
The Trump administration has time and gain stressed that weapon sales to various countries are imperative for the US economy, therefore many US Defense companies have got excellent support their government since early 2000s.
In April 2020, Northrop Grumman Corporation and Raytheon Missiles & Defense, partnered to pursue a U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) contract for the Next Generation Interceptor (NGI)
In March 2020, US based Lockheed Martin won a contract for $6.07 Billion from US Army for the production of Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) interceptors and related equipment. The equipment will be to be delivered across FY21-FY23 contract years. Ten other countries have already signed agreements to procure PAC-3 Missile interceptors
