The test could provide the Pentagon with a near-term defensive capability against hypersonic threats as it continues work on the Glide Phase Interceptor program, which is not expected to be delivered until 2031. China and Russia have both developed and demonstrated hypersonic weapons capable of traveling and maneuvering at speeds above Mach 5.
According to the budget documents, the planned test will involve a hypersonic glide vehicle flying “up the East Coast” while the Missile Defense Agency tracks it using “multi-phenomenology” elevated sensor data. The sensors are expected to include advanced air- and space-based platforms capable of detecting and monitoring the target.
The agency said a tactical battle management system would then process and fuse the tracking data, “enabling engage on remote,” allowing a weapon system to engage a target using targeting information from an external sensor rather than from the shooter itself. The documents do not specify whether the test will include the destruction of the hypersonic vehicle or identify the systems that will be used during the exercise.
Missile Defense Agency Director Lt. Gen. Heath Collins told the House Armed Services Committee in written testimony that the project would “demonstrate capabilities across the kill chain.” He added that “Successfully demonstrated capabilities would supplement current and future defense architecture.”
Collins said in 2024 that the agency was working to “think creatively and bring capability sooner” to address hypersonic threats. He indicated at the time that the capability would likely involve adapting existing systems rather than developing an entirely new weapon.
Project Maverick is part of a broader Low-Cost Defeat initiative that also includes a program known as the Low-Cost Interceptor. The Missile Defense Agency said the interceptor project is currently in a rapid design, testing and demonstration phase, with plans to confirm in 2027 that the interceptor can be produced in high numbers at a lower cost before conducting a prototype test in 2028.
The agency is requesting $460 million in fiscal 2027 funding for the Low-Cost Interceptor, Project Maverick and related advanced research activities. Officials said the programs are intended to improve missile defense capacity and lower operational costs.
The counter-hypersonic effort is also tied to the Pentagon’s broader Golden Dome missile defense initiative, which aims to create a layered defense network integrating sensors, interceptors and command-and-control systems. The Defense Department’s fiscal 2027 budget request includes $17.9 billion for Golden Dome, which has an estimated total cost of $185 billion.
Budget documents state that Golden Dome funding would support accelerated development of space-based sensors such as the Hypersonic and Ballistic Tracking Space Sensor, as well as a proliferated constellation of space-based interceptors and extensive testing of missile defense components. The Missile Defense Agency serves as the engineering, integration and testing lead for the architecture.
Golden Dome Director Gen. Michael Guetlein has said the program plans to conduct a missile interceptor demonstration by next summer. Lawmakers have also raised concerns about interceptor inventories and production capacity as the Pentagon seeks to expand missile defense capabilities.
During an April 15 congressional hearing, Rep. Don Bacon highlighted depleted stocks of ground-based interceptors following Operation Epic Fury in Iran and noted that the Pentagon’s fiscal 2027 budget request includes “tens of billions” of dollars to expand interceptor production. In written testimony, Collins said one of the objectives of the Low-Cost Interceptor initiative is to “restore magazine depth” and reduce the cost-per-kill through development of a “high-volume, affordable interceptor.”
Source: Air & Space Forces Magazine.
