In Response to North Korean Threats, South Korea Tests Hypersonic Glide Vehicle for the First Time
I guess we will see if the North Koreans decide to escalate with some other test of their own in response:
South Korea conducted its first test launch of a hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV) on Thursday, Cheong Wa Dae said, in an apparent show of force against North Korea amid heightening inter-Korean tensions following a recent border land mine blast.
The test launch was carried out to verify core hypersonic technologies, such as flight trajectories and speed, as a game-changing strategic asset capable of launching surprise precision strikes against enemy targets, presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a written briefing to the press.
President Lee Jae Myung observed the launch in person, accompanied by Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul and other officials.
An HGV is a missile system that uses a booster to accelerate and ascend into the upper atmosphere before separating from the booster to glide at lower altitudes at hypersonic speeds.
“The HGV successfully separated from its booster and seamlessly executed its planned flight path under hypersonic conditions,” she said. “This successful launch marks a major milestone in that preparations are complete to secure a new deterrent capable of striking critical targets across the theater of the Korean Peninsula.”
Lee’s office did not disclose the location of the test launch, but it reportedly took place on a barge inside a test center run by the Agency for Defense Development in Taean, about 130 kilometers south of Seoul.
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