The Army’s newest ultra-high-speed missile known as Dark Eagle was deployed to the U.S. island of Guam last month during a military exercise, according to Pacific Command.
The Seventh Infantry Division posted an online image Sunday of Adm. Samuel J. Paparo, PACOM commander, walking next to the new Long Range Hypersonic Weapon, the formal name for Dark Eagle, during Exercise Valiant Shield on Guam in June.
The post on Facebook stated that Adm. Paparo watched troops training with Dark Eagle and noted the accomplishments of those assigned to the division also known as the Multi-Domain Command-Pacific.
“Exercises like VALIANT SHIELD allow Pacific Command Joint Forces the opportunity to integrate forces from all branches of service and with our allies to conduct precise, lethal, and overwhelming multi-axis, multi-domain effects that demonstrate the strength and versatility of the joint force and our commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the post stated.
PACOM spokesman Army Maj. Jimmy Sheehan told Stars and Stripes, which first reported the deployment, that the photos were taken on Guam but did not say if the missile system remains on the island.
The new missile is one of the first hypersonic weapons that Adm. Paparo has called for deploying in his theater of operations to better deter China, which also has deployed hypersonic missiles, specifically the DF-17 road-mobile missile.
Dark Eagle missiles can travel at speeds up to 17 times the speed of sound and have a range of about 2,175 miles, enough to reach targets in China while defeating missile defenses.
The high-speed weapon can strike targets in as little as 20 minutes with a highly maneuverable, unpowered glide vehicle.
Adm. Paparo stated in a private report to Congress on the military needs of his command that the Pentagon is planning to deploy offensive missiles to Guam in addition to a new multibillion-dollar air and missile defense system on the island.
The report disclosed by The Washington Times last month stated that the new defenses will “provide the basis for a future offensive capability,” without providing details of the planned offensive weapons.
Potential missile systems for the deployment were said to include the Dark Eagle and the Army’s Typhon Mid-Range Capability, which can fire 1,200-mile-range Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles, the Times reported.
Each Dark Eagle battery typically includes an operations center and four transporter erector launchers with two missiles each.
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