The Pentagon's 2009 budget request will ask for $750 million to fund a prototype hypersonic aircraft called Blackswift, with expected operational name SR-72. Hypersonic speed describes velocities upward of Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound. Initial goals for the concept aircraft are aiming for Mach 6 speed. 

Initial goals for the attack drone are to conduct intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance or strike missions while undetected and within four hours of mission request.

The Blackswift project will initially be managed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) with collaboration from the U.S. Air Force (USAF). One of Blackswift's key characteristics is that it will be capable of "powered and recoverable hypersonic flight," which means the aircraft can safely land and later fly additional missions.

Blackswift's technology could be used to develop transport vehicles for staging U.S. assets in space. The concept could help develop a delivery vehicle of conventional warheads. This could be used to achieve the mission of the Prompt Global Strike which is to strike a target anywhere on the globe within 60 minutes of a launch order.

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