Twelve times the speed of sound. Stop for a moment and imagine what this figure really means: 14.800 kilometers per hour. An aircraft that takes off from Rome and flies over Berlin in less than six minutes. This is what China has just demonstrated with the test of the Feitian-2. What is it? It is a hypersonic aircraft that combines technologies never seen before and that has set off more than one alarm bell in the rooms of the Pentagon.
Engineers at Northwestern Polytechnical University just showed the world that American technology bans are no longer enough to stop Chinese innovation.
Feitian-2, When Speed Becomes Military Strategy
The Feitian-2 test was not a simple laboratory experiment. It was a practical demonstration of how China is redefining the very concept of modern warfare. Reaching Mach 12 means traveling at a speed that makes it absolutely impossible, without a doubt, to be intercepted by current defense systems. How the U.S. Congressional Budget Office highlighted, hypersonic missiles “have the potential to create uncertainty about what their ultimate target is” because they fly below the radar horizon at long ranges and their ability to maneuver during flight makes their trajectory unpredictable.
The aircraft developed by the Northwestern Polytechnic University uses a combined propulsion technology that is a real breakthrough in aerospace engineering. The system RBCC (Rocket-Based Combined Cycle) integrates a rocket engine and a ramjet into a single unit, allowing for seamless transitions between different flight modes. It’s like having two hearts beating in sync to propel the aircraft to impossible speeds.
The technology that scares the West
The real innovation of the Feitian-2 lies in its ability to operate autonomously while managing the insane demands of hypersonic flight. During testing, the aircraft demonstrated “variable geometry” intake, variable thrust acceleration, and autonomous flight with variable angle of attack. Simply put, this contraption can adapt in real time to flight conditions that would kill any other aircraft.
The fuel used is a mixture of kerosene and hydrogen peroxide which eliminates the need for heavy and complex cryogenic systems. As the researchers explain, this solution significantly increases payload capacity and fuel efficiency. It's the difference between driving a normal car and a Formula 1 that weighs as much as a bicycle.
The embargo that doesn't work
Northwestern Polytechnical University has been on the US blacklist for years. Staff and students are barred from purchasing or using products made in the USA, including mathematical software and advanced technological components. Yet they have just proven to be at the world's forefront in the hypersonic sector. As I wrote to you in this article, China is the only nation to have sent a hypersonic missile into orbit that has proven to be actually functional.
The Feitian-2 represents the evolution of the previous Feitian-1, tested in July 2022. While the first prototype had demonstrated the ability to stable transitions between different speeds, the new model has made a quantum leap in terms of performance and autonomous control.
Feitian-2, Geopolitical and Future Ramifications
The success of the Chinese test has implications that go far beyond the technological aspect. According to international analysts, this achievement could force other nations to accelerate the development of hypersonic and scramjet technologies. The United States is working on its own hypersonic missiles, but the Feitian-2 test shows that China has the ability to develop advanced technologies despite trade bans.
China's hypersonic aircraft is not only a demonstration of technological strength, but also a clear political message: innovation always finds its way, even when half the world tries to block it. The era of Western technological supremacy may be coming to an end, replaced by a multipolar world where speed, literally, makes the difference between those who command and those who are subjected.
As long as rockets were limited to carrying satellites into space, we could fool ourselves into thinking the race was purely scientific. But when they fly at Mach 12 carrying something else, the game changes completely.
