The U.S. Department of Defense might have to rely on coffee to stay awake! On October 8, the Chinese private aerospace company Lingkong Tianhang celebrated its seventh anniversary by releasing a promotional video showcasing blurry missile prototypes and hypersonic aircraft designs, which left foreign military enthusiasts and intelligence analysts "stunned".

This isn't just a "fireworks show," but a demonstration of hypersonic missile technology: speeds reaching 4 Mach (twice that of the Concorde), with altitudes soaring into near space between 20 to 100 kilometers. The missiles deliberately blurred in the video seem to be sending a message to the West: "Guess who I am!" The result? Western media went into a frenzy, claiming that this Chinese private enterprise single-handedly outperformed the entire U.S. hypersonic project. Embarrassing, right?

Lingkong Tianhang's move can be likened to "Sun Wukong's chaos at Heaven's Gate." The video not only showcases the next generation of hypersonic missiles but also reveals an experimental aircraft project—planned for a 2026 maiden flight, testing aerodynamic performance, heat-resistant materials, and propulsion systems. Imagine this thing speeding through the edge of space, so fast that even missiles can't catch its exhaust.

Even more impressive is that the company doesn't just focus on military applications; it also aims for civilian use—from long-range strike weapons to "Flash-like" global transportation, covering everything. Analysts shake their heads, indicating that China's hypersonic technology has evolved from a "laboratory toy" to a "combat-ready" system. And all of this comes from a private enterprise! In contrast, American defense giants are still struggling with test delays, highlighting a gap as vast as "Sun Wukong versus Zhu Bajie."

Speaking of the U.S., the situation is nothing short of a comedy. Since the 2000s, the U.S. hypersonic weapons program has been pouring money. The Army's Long Range Hypersonic Weapon, the Navy's Common Hypersonic Weapon, and the Air Force's Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon sound intimidating, but what's the result? The originally scheduled 2023 deployment of the Long Range Hypersonic Weapon was postponed to late 2025, while the Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon was even worse, after a 2024 test, the Air Force directly said "no purchase."

A report from the U.S. Congressional Research Service bluntly states that the U.S. is still struggling in the "prototype phase," with budgets surging from $4.7 billion in 2023 to $6.9 billion in 2025, yet end-to-end testing won't happen until the end of 2024 and April 2025. Russia's "Kinzhal" and "Zircon" missiles have already made their presence felt on the Ukrainian battlefield, and China's DF-17 missile has caused sleepless nights for U.S. military intelligence.

In contrast, Lingkong Tianhang successfully tested a 4-Mach prototype in October 2024 and unveiled a 4-Mach drone called "Cuan Tianhou" in January 2025, aiming for a supersonic passenger plane by 2030. Foreign media joked: "The U.S. spent billions building a 'hypersonic wall,' but a Chinese private enterprise dismantled it with one video—this isn't just technological dominance, it's a 'efficiency black hole'!"

Why is China so strong? The secret lies in "military-civilian integration + private vitality." Lingkong Tianhang doesn't just develop missiles; it heavily invests in propulsion and flight control technologies—these are the "souls" of hypersonic systems, needing to withstand extreme thermal and mechanical stress while ensuring precise navigation. The launch tests of the experimental vehicles in the video have already entered the "operational phase," with data heading straight toward combat verification. Compared to the U.S. reliance on a massive defense industry, China's model is like "e-commerce opening a missile factory": flexible, fast, and low-cost. The result? Beijing quietly transformed hypersonic technology from a "theoretical dream" into a "test reality" during the intense U.S.-China competition.

If the first flight in 2026 is successful, it will not only be a technological milestone but also a "nuclear-level" signal for geopolitical strategy: China is not only catching up but leading. Of course, the video details are blurred, and there is still a distance to "full deployment." But the information is enough to shock: China's hypersonic technology is no longer just theoretical talk, but a "rocket about to take off." What about the U.S.? Perhaps it's time to reflect: why are its projects always like "tortoise racing," while the opponent has "supersonic overtaken." Lingkong Tianhang's anniversary video is not just a corporate birthday celebration, but a "horror movie" preview for global military enthusiasts.

What will happen in the next decade? It seems that the U.S. Department of Defense needs to upgrade its coffee machine quickly—otherwise, if it can't keep up with this "private enterprise dark horse," it could truly become an international joke!

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7559572393711141416/

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