The US is preparing a new hypersonic missile in case it has to reach targets deep in Iran
Source: Scripps News
Posted 4:25 PM, May 01, 2026
Russia's been firing hypersonic weapons at Ukraine for four years. The United States has never fired one in combat. But that gap may be about to close in the Middle East.
Recently released footage is reported to be the first ever showing the Dark Eagle missile mounted on a B-1, a clear sign the Air Force is moving forward with integrating hypersonic weapons onto one of its most capable bombers. U.S. Central Command has asked the Pentagon to deploy Dark Eagle, the Army's long range hypersonic weapon, to the region.
The catalyst appears to be intelligence showing Iran has repositioned ballistic missile launchers beyond the reach of existing U.S. strike systems. The U.S.' existing Precision Strike Missile tops out around 300 miles of range. Dark Eagle reaches roughly 1,700. It can also be deployed using mobile ground launchers.
The Dark Eagle is a boost glide system. A rocket fires it into the upper atmosphere, then it maneuvers at five times the speed of sound or faster on the way down. It has no ballistic arc, no predictable path, and gives only seconds of warning time at best.
Read more: https://www.scrippsnews.com/us-news/iran-war/the-us-is-preparing-a-new-hypersonic-missile-in-case-it-has-to-reach-targets-deep-in-iran
REFERENCE - https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143658501
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long-Range_Hypersonic_Weapon
What I think is that they have a hypersonic vehicle that is part of a modular, configurable system. I think they are bragging about the high-performance configuration's full capability, and at the same time bragging about the mobility of a lower-performance configuration without being candid about the lower performance.
If you scroll down in the article a bit further and you will see this....
That's a two stage booster for the long range glide body. That isn't going to fit into those mobile missile tubes. From the article, it appears that it would fit into the launch tube of an Ohio class ballistic missile submarine, and a submarine IS mobile, but I don't think that is what is meant by a mobile missile launcher.
Here is an article more relevant to my experience:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypersonic_Technology_Vehicle_2
This vehicle is launched using a Minotaur IV Lite, which has three stages. This is the actual booster on the pad at Vandenberg with the HTV-2 vehicle as payload:
To gain "mobility" for that, you load it into something like a C-17 Globemaster, then push it out the back at altitude. It falls for a while with a pilot chute to keep it upright, and then - when the plane clears the area - blast off!
