Mr. Adam Ni, a Chinese defense expert at the Australian National University, said that the hypersonic aircraft that Beijing has just tested is capable of overcoming all missile defences of any country.
The Starry Sky-2, also known as the Waverider, had its first test flight on August 3 at an unnamed location in northwestern China, SCMP reported. It is capable of carrying a nuclear missile 6 times faster than the speed of sound.
Mr. Adam Ni commented that Starry Sky-2 will add strength to the Chinese army.
"The successful development and testing of the Starry Sky-2 Waverider hypersonic aircraft is a huge step forward in China's hypersonic weapons program," Mr. Ni told Australia's nine.com.au website.
" hypersonic missiles will be a powerful addition to the diverse missile arsenal of the Chinese military. More importantly, it allows the Chinese military to defeat any existing missile defense system of any country, including the United States," Ni said.
The Chinese Academy of Space Dynamics said that the Starry Sky-2 was launched into space by a multi-layered rocket before separating and moving on its own.
During the flight, the missile was able to move and maintain a speed of Mach 5.5 (about 6,789 km/h) for more than 6 minutes and reached a maximum speed of Mach 6 (about 7,344 km/h).
Although it is only a test aircraft, the Waverider can carry a nuclear warhead capable of penetrating any existing missile shield.
Current missile defense systems can only intercept missiles flying at low speeds and can easily predict flight trajectories.
Beijing military analyst Zhou Chenming told SCMP that Waverider has many military applications, initially deployed as conventional weapons rather than nuclear weapons.
Earlier this year, General John Hyten, head of the US Air Force Strategic Command, admitted that the superpower is highly unable to defend against future nuclear weapons from China and Russia.
Speaking to US lawmakers, Mr. Hyten said that the speed and capability of hypersonic missiles make it too difficult for the US defense system to intercept.
