US Navy's newest air-to-air missile could tilt balance in South China Sea
The US Navy's deployment of new extremely long-range air-to-air missiles in the Indo-Pacific could erase China's advantage in aerial reach, experts say, part of an intensifying focus on projecting power amid high tensions in the region.
The AIM-174B, developed from the readily available Raytheon (RTX.N), opens new tab SM-6 air defence missile, is the longest-range such missile the United States has ever fielded and was officially acknowledged in July.