The US Air Force reduced the number of companies to bid on its search for a new hypersonic conventional strike weapon to five. According to a 21 July notice of contract action on the US Federal Business Opportunities website, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Orbital ATK or Raytheon are the vendors chosen to submit offers for an engineering, manufacturing and development contract planned to be awarded in early fiscal year 2018. 

The weapon is required to provide a precision strike capability against fixed and moving targets in an anti-access, area-denial environment using Global Positioning System and Inertial Guidance System navigation.