US Air force plans to have independent robotic hypersonic drones for spying and attacking in the 2040s

US Air Force weapons developers expect to operate reusable hypersonic drones by the 2040s.

The Air Force and DARPA plan to have an improved hypersonic air vehicle by 2023.

* hypersonic weapons likely to be operational in the mid-2020s
* unmanned hypersonic spyplanes in 2030s
* recoverable hypersonic drones in the 2040s

Hypersonic weapons will be able to reach speeds of Mach 5 to Mach 10.

The US Air Force roadmap to hypersonic technology.

The US Air Force roadmap to for autonomy.