(ZEROHEDGE) – The U.S. Air Force used a hyper-velocity projectile (HVP), capable of traveling Mach 7.3, or about 5,600 mph, fired from an Army M109 howitzer tank, to shoot down a fast-moving cruise missile over a missile range in New Mexico.
"Tanks shooting down cruise missiles is awesome," Dr. Will Roper, assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology, and logistics, told reporters, who was quoted by Asia Times. "Video game, sci-fi awesome.
"You're not supposed to be able to shoot down a cruise missile with a tank. But, yes, you can, if the bullet is smart enough, and the bullet we use for that system is exceptionally smart," Roper said.
Main battle tanks, nevertheless a self-propelled 155 mm howitzer, are not designed to destroy fast-moving cruise missiles, suggests the HVP "smart bullet" is ground-breaking technology that could revolutionize the modern battlefield.
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