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North Korean authorities have been confirmed to have successfully conducted a test of a solid fuel engine for a new-type intermediate-range hypersonic missile.
After conducting a test of the engine last November and mounting it on a missile for a flight test this January, they have once again pushed for a ground test of the engine, reflecting the contents identified in the flight test.
According to the Korean Central News Agency on the 20th, the Missile General Bureau and its affiliated organization, Engine Research Institute, conducted a ground launch test of a multi-stage solid fuel engine to be mounted on an intermediate-range hypersonic missile at the West Sea Satellite Launch Site in Dongchang-ri, Cholsan County, Pyonganbuk-do, in the morning and afternoon of the previous day (19th), following the schedule for the development of new weapon systems.
Through the test, the agency claimed that “there was a confirmation on the timetable for completing the development of the new-type intermediate-range hypersonic missile weapon system.”
Kim Jong Un, the Chairman of the State Affairs of North Korea, who attended the site, evaluated that “the military strategic value of this weapon system is as important as intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) because its starting point is our country’s security environment and the operational requirements of the people’s army,” and said, “The enemies know better about it.”
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North Korea’s development of hypersonic missiles has been ongoing since the past. It was announced that the first ground launch test of the “new type of high power solid fuel engine for intermediate-range ballistic missiles” was conducted on November 11 and 14 last year. On the 11th, the first-stage engine was tested, and on the 14th, the second-stage engine was tested separately.
North Korea emphasized that a solid guarantee is prepared to proceed wholly with developing the new intermediate-range ballistic missile weapon system through satisfactory results, confirming its reliability and stability rigidly.
On January 14, a test launch of an intermediate-range solid fuel ballistic missile equipped with a hypersonic maneuverable warhead (warhead) was conducted.
At that time, North Korea claimed that the purpose was to confirm the “faithfulness of newly developed multi-stage high power solid fuel engines” along with the warhead’s flight characteristics and maneuverability. If North Korea’s announcement is true, it has secured new weapons capable of surprise attacks and evasion of interception networks compared to existing missiles.
As a result, some have suggested that North Korea’s missile development could neutralize the missile defense (MD) system of South Korea, the U.S., and Japan. Hypersonic missiles move like ballistic missiles at the beginning of launch. Still, at a certain altitude, the propulsion body and warhead separate and glide at more than Mach 5 (speed 3,800 miles per hour) while maneuvering irregularly up, down, left, and right, making it not easy to intercept the existing missile defense system of South Korea and the U.S. This technology is leading in Russia, so it is presumed that North Korea received technology transfer through the North Korea-Russia meeting last year.
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