US Hypersonic Missile Fails in Test in Fresh Setback for Program
- Pentagon says problem took place following missile ignition
- China, Russia and North Korea pressing ahead with hypersonics
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A flight test of a hypersonic missile system in Hawaii ended in failure due to a problem that took place after ignition, the Department of Defense said, delivering a fresh blow to a program that has suffered stumbles.
It didn’t provide further details of what took place in the Wednesday test, but said in a statement sent by email “the Department remains confident that it is on track to field offensive and defensive hypersonic capabilities on target dates beginning in the early 2020s.”