Initial tests indicated that the missile would not meet its performance targets—but as competition has grown from Russia and China, the Air Force seems willing to give it another chance.

In March 2023, the United States Air Force canceled the procurement of the AGM-183A Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW), indicating that it would not pursue volume production of the hypersonic weapon after it failed all-up-round tests. The Air Force conducted its ostensibly final ARRW test one year later, at the Reagan Test Site on Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific Ocean from a B-52 Stratofortress operating from Andersen Air Force Base (AFB), Guam.

That seemed to be the end of the ARRW program. However, on Monday, the Department of the Air Force (DAF) announced that it had awarded Lockheed Martin a $694 million contract for the production and fielding of the AGM-183A ARRW.

“The contract was executed under the Department of [Defense’s] Enterprise-Wide Agile Acquisition Contract to modernize America’s Arsenal of Freedom,” the DAF explained. It noted that the award was issued on September 29, 2026, only one day before the end of fiscal year 2026 (FY26).

America Needs a Hypersonic Air-to-Ground Missile—Can the ARRW Fly Straight?

A string of technical and flight test failures resulted in the ARRW being removed from the proverbial quiver, and the Air Force shifted to near-term budget and focus on the smaller, air-breathing Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile (HACM).

However, the ARRW tests did continue. It was during those subsequent flight tests that the aerospace giant’s platform performed better than expected and proved the core-boost glide concept. In addition, defense leadership recognized the value of having multiple, and more importantly complementary high-speed strike options—with both boost-glide ARRW and air-breathing HACM—in the arsenal, as a way to counter adversarial air defenses.

At the same time, both China and Russia have been racing to develop high-speed, long-range hypersonic standoff capabilities that are capable of penetrating advanced anti-access/area-denial (A2/AD) systems, and the US military has fallen behind. The ARRW can be air-launched from the B-52 and B-1B Lancer—and possibly the B-21 Raider and F-15EX Eagle II—as a rapid-response, long-range strike weapon.

“This is a turning point in our advanced weapons roadmap,” said Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink. “By moving ARRW from test to production, we’re providing our combatant commanders with a credible, high-speed strike weapon capable of penetrating the most advanced anti-access and area-denial systems.”

About the ARRW Missile

The ARRW was one of the US Air Force’s main programs to develop a hypersonic air-to-ground missile. Each weapon is equipped with a rocket motor that can speed the missile past Mach 5 before it glides to its target. By traveling at five times the speed of sound, the weapon gives combatant commanders the ability to hit time-sensitive targets with ease.

During a May 2022 test flight, a B-52H Stratofortress successfully released the ARRW off the Southern California coast. Following separation from the aircraft, the ARRW’s booster ignited and burned for the expected duration, achieving hypersonic speeds five times greater than the speed of sound. As follow-up tests proved less successful, the program was canceled.

In the years since, the system appears to have been refined and improved—at least enough that the US Air Force is giving the program another look. There are estimates that it could reach Mach 7 to Mach 20 during the glide/descending phase. At such speeds, it would be nearly impossible to counter; it also wouldn’t need to carry any conventional explosive warhead, as its kinetic energy would be more than enough to destroy the target, possibly including a warship at sea.

“Fielding ARRW enhances our ability to hold targets at risk anywhere around the world,” said Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Ken Wilsbach. “This hypersonic weapon provides the Joint Force a flexible and rapid response option for highly contested environments.”

About the Author: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. He has contributed to dozens of newspapers, magazines, and websites over a 30-year career in journalism, including Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author at Editor@nationalinterest.org.

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