Hypersonic Space Test Fuels Sino-American Arms Race

WASHINGTON: When news broke this week that China tested, over the summer, what appears to be a Fractional Orbital Bombardment System (FOBS), a bevy of military officials and lawmakers raced to warn that the weapons test is the latest in a series of provocative arms race moves from Beijing. FOBS technology is not new, although China's alleged use of a nuclear-capable hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV) as the pointy end of the stick would be a twist. The Soviets deployed a FOBS — which combines a low-flying missile and nuclear warhead that reaches Low Earth Orbit, but does not remain in…