The US Air Force is pursuing a new family of long-range missiles capable of striking targets more than 1,000 nautical miles away, with air-to-air and air-to-surface variants designed to counter Chinese forces in a potential Indo-Pacific conflict. The program prioritizes an air-to-air missile and aims to give US aircraft the ability to engage enemy air, land, and maritime targets from outside heavily defended areas.

The effort supports the Air Force’s broader “long-range kill chain” strategy, which focuses on detecting and destroying Chinese forces at extended ranges while operating beyond Beijing’s anti-access/area-denial networks, according to USNI News.

The missiles would significantly exceed the range of many current US air-launched weapons and complement other initiatives such as long-range maritime strike missiles, dispersed basing, and new unmanned combat aircraft designed for a potential conflict over Taiwan or in the South China Sea.