AUKUS partners to speed up hypersonic flight testing

This development follows the AUKUS Defence Ministers’ Meeting on 26 September where it was announced that the three nations were increasing their collective ability to develop and deliver offensive and defensive hypersonic technologies under Pillar II.

Hypersonic weapons are long-range strike missiles that can travel five times the speed of sound. They could be launched from the land, sea or air.

The PA would incorporate existing national efforts, including multiple test flights across all nations, giving the AUKUS effort on hypersonics a strong boost.

The development of hypersonic technology is a key Defence priority, identified in the 2024 National Defence Strategy. It is a capability that can hold time-critical and heavily defended targets at risk from increased ranges, enhancing the survivability of the Australian Defence Force against potential threats.

“This agreement will accelerate Australia’s sovereign ability to develop and deliver offensive and defensive hypersonic technologies – through a robust testing and experimentation campaign under AUKUS Pillar II,” according to Chief Defence Scientist, Professor Tanya Monro AC.

“HyFliTE will leverage our collective expertise and innovation enterprises to deliver hypersonic capabilities at pace.”

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Australia remains committed to its domestic and international legal obligations as it pursues hypersonic technologies.

Officials expanded on co-operation efforts earlier this week during a joint press conference at the Trilateral Defence Ministers’ Meeting on 17 November.

United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III said AUKUS allies are working on a bilateral basis.

“We’re doing a number of things to develop capability with Australia and also with Japan bilaterally,” he said.

“That is all about working together to leverage technology to provide real capability to the war fighter as quickly as we possibly can. And we’re making progress in that area. And we expect that Japan will join AUKUS pillar II at some point in the not-too-distant future, to work on specific projects that have yet to be made.

“There are just so many things that that we can work together on and are working to be together on … quantum capability … unmanned teaming aircraft, and just a number of other things that include Long Range Strike and so many other things that I believe we’re going to – that our work is going to pay significant dividends to the war fighter here going forward.”

Japanese Minister of Defense Gen Nakatani said Japan needed to co-operate and coordinate together with like-minded partners and allied countries.

“Between Japan, US and Australia, we would like to coordinate our strategies and to enhance our capabilities and to put that into action.”

“And so, for missile defence architecture and the network associated with it, that is one of the efforts we are making to include information sharing to enhance these capabilities.

“In terms of exercises and training, in 2024 there was training in Australia which was titled (Exercise) Pitch Black, and in this exercise we are considering deploying our F-35 units to Australia to participate.”