In this paper, adaptive fuzzy fault-tolerant control (AFFTC) for the attitude control system of a hypersonic gliding vehicle (HGV) experiencing an actuator fault is proposed. Actuator faults of the HGV are considered with respect to its actual structure and actuator characteristics. The HGV’s attitude system is firstly represented by a T–S fuzzy model, and then a normal T–S fuzzy controller is designed. A reinforcement learning (RL)-based policy iterative solution algorithm is proposed for the solving of the T-S fuzzy controller. Then, based on the normal T–S controller, a fuzzy FTC controller is proposed in which the control matrices can improve themselves according to the special fault. An integral reinforcement learning (IRL)-based solving algorithm is proposed to reduce the dependence of the design methods on the HGV model. Simulations on three different kinds of actuator faults show that the designed IRL-based FTC can ensure a reliable flight by the HGV.