China‘s MD-22 hypersonic drone took flight for the first time, and boasts a maximum range of 4,971 miles while transporting carry of up to 1,323 pounds, making it the perfect strike aircraft.
The MD-22 can be launched from high-altitude platforms such as balloons and other reconnaissance aircraft, thus increaseing their operational range as well as survivability. Once in the air, it can achieve speeds of Mach 7. As for the US, they also have their own hypersonic drone in the works, the X-51A Waverider.
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Photo credit: Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)
You can run 100 ground tests, but if there’s one unresolved issue, it will inevitably emerge during flight. The flight path is highly complex – diving first, then ascending and returning, which makes this generation of aircraft even more challenging than its predecessors,” said Zhang Chen’an, Project Team Member.
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