North Korea: "South Korea's HGV May Not Have Flown at Hypersonic Speeds"... Raises Doubts About Test Success

North Korea raised the possibility that the hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV), which the South Korean government said had successfully completed a test launch, may in fact have failed to fly at hypersonic speeds. It cited the absence of soot on the vehicle’s surface in photos released by the South Korean government.

According to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Oct. 15, Jang Chang-ha, head of North Korea’s Missile General Bureau, made the claim that day in a question-and-answer session with a KCNA reporter, responding to a question about North Korea’s assessment of South Korea’s HGV test launch.

The first test launch of a hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV) by the Agency for Defense Development, witnessed by President Lee Jae-myung on the 8th. Yonhap News, Cheong Wa Dae

Referring to photos released by the Blue House, Jang said, “I also saw some very interesting photos.” Regarding a photo showing the vehicle descending vertically just before hitting the sea, he claimed, “It is hard to believe that the glide vehicle went through a hypersonic flight environment involving extremely high temperatures, as there is not a trace of soot on its exterior and its paint is spotless.”

“People who have never tested a hypersonic glide vehicle cannot know what changes occur on its exterior,” he said. “Those photos could be evidence that the vehicle may not have flown at hypersonic speeds, contrary to what was announced.” He added that the photos and statements released by South Korea “will raise various suspicions.”

The Blue House previously announced that on Oct. 8, with President Lee Jaemyung in attendance, South Korea conducted the first test launch of an HGV under development using domestic technology. The launch took place from a barge at sea at the Anheung Test Site of the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) in Taean, South Chungcheong Province. The following day, it released photos showing the launch and the vehicle hitting its target. The vehicle was reported to have flown several hundred kilometers.

Hypersonic weapons generally travel at speeds of Mach 5 or higher. Their flight paths and maneuverability differ from those of ballistic missiles, making them difficult to detect, track and intercept.

Four days after South Korea announced its HGV test launch, North Korea fired several ballistic missiles from the Pyongyang area toward the East Sea on Oct. 12. The following day, it said through KCNA that it had conducted a tactical ballistic missile test launch.

North Korea is also continuing to develop hypersonic weapons. It launched a new hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile in January 2025, and in September 2026 it test-fired a missile believed to be an upgraded version of the Hwasong-11ma-series short-range hypersonic missile. It was also reported to have conducted a launch drill for a hypersonic intermediate-range strategic missile on Oct. 3.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.