The U.S. Army and Navy recently completed a flight test of a conventional hypersonic missile at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, according to the Department of Defense (DOD).
A collaboration between the Army's Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office and the Navy's Strategic Systems Programs, the test was the second successful end-to-end flight test of the All Up Round (AUR) this year and the first live-fire event for the Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon system – also known as Dark Eagle – using a battery operations center and a transporter erector launcher.
"This test builds on several flight tests in which the Common Hypersonic Glide Body achieved hypersonic speed at target distances and demonstrates that we can put this capability in the hands of the warfighter," Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth said in a statement.
Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro called the test "an important milestone in the development" of one of the United States' "most advanced weapons systems."
"As we approach the first delivery of this capability to our Army partners, we will continue to press forward to integrate Conventional Prompt Strike into our Navy surface and subsurface ships to help ensure we remain the world's preeminent fighting force," Del Toro said.
According to the DOD, the information gathered from the test will support the Army's first operational use of the common hypersonic AUR missile, as well as Navy sea-based deployment.
The Navy's Strategic Systems Programs is the lead designer of the common hypersonic missile and Director Vice Adm. Johnny Wolfe Jr. touted the Army-Navy partnership in developing the technology.
"This test is a demonstration of the successful Navy and Army partnership that has allowed us to develop a transformational hypersonic weapon system that will deliver unmatched capability to meet joint warfighting needs," Wolfe Jr. said in a statement.
Dark Eagle is a truck-launched system that fires hypersonic missiles at speeds greater than 3,800 mph, or more than five times the speed of sound, according to a Congressional Research Service summary.
These missiles reportedly have a range of 1,725 miles and are manufactured by Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman.
"They can reach the top of the Earth's atmosphere and remain just beyond the range of air and missile defense systems until they are ready to strike, and by then it's too late to react," the CRS summary said.
Thursday's test flight came less than a month after Russia used its new Oreshnik hypersonic ballistic missile on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, with Moscow potentially looking to use another Oreshnik in the coming days, U.S. officials said.
Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.