On June 25, Yemen's Houthi rebels publicly announced that they had used a new hypersonic missile to hit an Israeli container ship in the Red Sea. According to satellite photos, the ship will most likely have to be scrapped.
According to public information given by the Houthis, they are using the newly developed "Hatem-2" hypersonic anti-ship ballistic missile, and the video of the missile launch is released along with the photos and information.
In the video, you can see that the missile used in Yemen is indeed a missile with a double-cone warhead and hypersonic flight performance. It can be seen that the Houthis are not bragging, they have indeed come up with something that the Americans could not have dreamed of.
So the next question is, where did the Houthis get their hypersonic missiles, and they can't be a gift from nature that grows in the desert, right?
In fact, this matter is not complicated, because Iran itself also has hypersonic missiles. Of course, it is unlikely that the whole thing will be given directly to hypersonic missiles, after all, the Americans are also staring at it more strictly. But there is no problem with some small cores that are difficult for the Houthis to produce.
Judging by the appearance of the Hatem-2 missile, it looks very much like the Fatah-110 series of hypersonic ballistic missiles of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. This missile is the most successful and largest family of missiles developed by Iran so far. The missile originated in the Soviet Union, and after years of refinement and development, it has become one of the most successful missiles in the world.
Up to now, the latest version of the Fatah series of missiles has a range of more than 1,500 kilometers, has the ability to fly at hypersonic speeds, has a warhead weight of about 700 kilograms, and an error of less than 10 meters, and has a strong countermeasure and lethal capability against ships. The most important thing is that the production is simple, in addition to the guidance system, engine, heat protection coating and other core components require high technology, other parts can be made by a factory. Even Yemen's Houthi have the ability to produce and assemble similar missiles after getting the core components.
Therefore, I am afraid that the Houthis in Yemen have received relevant technical support from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, obtained advanced missile technology, and I am afraid that there are some live ammunition, and they have pointed out the early missile manufacturing and assembly technology themselves. In addition, it is supported by Iran's limited critical missile components. In the end, the missile was successfully built.
The Prosperity Guardian escort operation carried out by the Americans for more than half a year not only did not bring any real damage to the Houthis, but made them stronger and stronger.
This matter is simply a slap in the face of the United States, the hypersonic missiles of the United States and its allies have not yet succeeded, the ARRW project has been launched, the LRHW project is barely usable, but it has not been completely completed, and if you really want to equip it, you will have to wait at least until 2026. As a result, now China has hypersonic missiles, Russia has hypersonic missiles, Iran has hypersonic missiles, North Korea has hypersonic missiles, and now you tell me that Yemen Houthis have hypersonic missiles, and your hypersonic missiles are wholesale? How are there so many!
In fact, the main reason why the United States is now in such a predicament is that their own algorithm for the development of hypersonic missiles is wrong. The Americans, in the wrong calculus data, went to the black in the wrong way. Even the Americans themselves feel that their data are not wrong, and not only do not open their own relevant algorithms to hostile countries, but also require their allies to use their own algorithms and data to develop hypersonic missiles.
On the contrary, China, Russia, Iran and other countries have been a blessing in disguise, because the Americans blocked the technology, so they had to start from scratch to rebuild the digital model, but bypassed the mistakes of the Americans.
After that, everyone will know, Iran has supported the Houthi technology, and Russia has supported the North Korean technology. The technology of hypersonic missiles continues to expand, after all, this thing is much less technically difficult than that of fifth-generation aircraft.
On the contrary, the United States and its allies have not been equipped with hypersonic missiles until now.
Finally, let's talk about the Houthi hypersonic missile, don't look like it, but technically speaking, it is a typical aerodynamic configuration of a spin-into hypersonic vehicle, and it really has the ability to take off with a solid rocket engine, press down and slide after reaching the adjacent space, and then fly at hypersonic speed to hit the target, and it is the ability to move surface targets.
When a missile looks like a hypersonic missile, flies like a hypersonic missile, and explodes like a hypersonic missile, there is no doubt that this is a hypersonic missile.