On side line of national congress, Mr Tan Yonghua, head of No. 6 Research Institute under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) in an interview with Science and Technology Daily confirm that indeed a scramjet has been successfully tested
China Successful Test Flight of Mach 4.5 Aircraft Using New Scramjet
Chinese artist’s impression of China’s hypersonic jet
An artist’s impression of Lockheed Martin’s hypersonic jet
China has been doing research in developing scramjet for years and has now succeeded in developing a new type of scramjet to achieve the speed of Mach 4.5. It is hopeful for future products to achieve the speed of March 7 to 10 and above.
The information was revealed by Tan Yonghua, head of No. 6 Research Institute under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) in an interview with Science and Technology Daily when he attended NPC (National People’s Congress, China’s parliament).
As far back as in March 2015, cannews.com.cn, the website of the Science and Technology Daily, carried a report on his research institute’s successful test of the new type of scramjet.
In September, the website’s report on the successful test of China’s new high-speed aircraft became viral on the Internet. I gave a post on my blog titled “The Mystery of China’s Hypersonic Flying Vehicle” on the test on September 27. Excerpts of the post is given below:
The test is difficult as it is the test of a “trans-generation flying vehicle” with its unique manner of the flight, far greater speed and height and the short time allowed for preparations of the test. The professional of the test flight team are in charge of the various tasks of design, planning and command for the test flight.
According to the report, a few hours after taking off, the task of flight was completed. A dark-colored aircraft was seen diving close to the runway of the airfield. It then flattened and landed smoothly. The report says, “The test flight this time realized the test center’s breakthrough in the area of hypersonic test flight. It marks the increasing maturity of the test center in the area of test flight technology of that type of aircraft.”
There has been much speculation what kind of hypersonic flying vehicle it is in the report. Some believe that it is a hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV), but the test of a HGV does not take hours.
Others regard the aircraft tested is something like US X-51A but people doubt whether China has the technology to have a hypersonic aircraft like X-51A flying for hours.
Still others believe that the new aircraft is not hypersonic but something flying faster than existing aircrafts.
I have searched cannews.com.cn website but failed to find the report. Perhaps it cannot be found due to the secrecy. I can only say that it is indeed a mystic test of a mystic aircraft.
Now, as Mr. Tan said that China has put in use its new type scramjet to achieve March 4.5, this blogger believes that it was the test of a Mach 4.5 aircraft using the new scramjet.
Anxious to remain No. 1 in military technology, the US is certainly making great efforts in developing hypersonic flying vehicle as according to Financial Times, “A hypersonic aircraft would give US military planners a significant advantage in reaching targets before opponents had time to react.”
Financial Times says in its report “Lockheed hails progress on hypersonic military aircraft” on March 15, “Lockheed Martin revealed on Tuesday it is on the brink of a technological breakthrough that could lead to the US developing military aircraft that can fly six times the speed of sound.
“The aircraft would be capable of speeds up to six times the speed of sound, or Mach 6.”
“However, military engineers have struggled for decades with so-called scramjet engine technology to power such an aircraft.”
Therefore, “Lockheed envisages working on the hypersonic project throughout the 2020s, with aircraft potentially entering service in the 2030s.”
Source: mt.sohu.com “Our country conducting research on new aeronautic power: New scramjet engine has already been in use” and mil.huanqiu.com “Does China’s hypersonic flying vehicle look like that?” (summary by Chan Kai Yee based on the reports in Chinese)
Source: Financial Times “Lockheed hails progress on hypersonic military aircraft”, full text of which can be viewed at