World’s Largest Airplane to Launch Hypersonic Aircraft
Six-engined
Stratolaunch Roc could be back in the air over California’s Mojave Desert as
soon as January.
Stratolaunch’s
massive jet is the world’s largest airplane. It made its first flight in
Mojave, California, in 2019. Credit: Stratolaunch
Stratolaunch, owner of the world’s largest
airplane, has announced a new research contract with the U.S. military to help
develop hypersonic weapons.
President and COO Zachary Krevor told FLYING on
Thursday the six-engined jet, nicknamed “Roc,” could begin its next set of test
flights as soon as January in preparation to launch autonomous hypersonic test
planes later in 2022. Hypersonic aircraft are designed to fly at least five
times the speed of sound.
Roc made headlines in 2019 when it successfully
conducted its first flight, becoming the world’s largest airplane in terms of
wingspan—from wingtip to wingtip, it measures 385 feet. That’s longer than an
American football field; wider than the wingspan of a Boeing 747-8 or Howard
Hughes’ famed H-4 Hercules, aka the Spruce
Goose.
‘Threat Replication’
The new military contract calls for Stratolaunch to provide “threat replication” for research by the Pentagon’s Missile Defense Agency to help scientists understand how to engage and intercept hypersonic threats.
Recently, U.S. military leaders have expressed concern about the capability of U.S. forces to defend against hypersonic weapons, which fly so fast that they could strike targets in the U.S. with little or no warning. The Pentagon has ramped up its hypersonic weapons research.
Krevor
told FLYING that Roc and
Talon-A —Stratolaunch’s new autonomous testbed aircraft under development—will
help hypersonic weapons engineers develop a solution set to “counter this
growing threat from peer competitors such as China.”
With
contracts numbering “well into the double digits—both government and commercial
agreements— there’s clearly a strong market for our services,” Krevor said.
Roc is a dual fuselage airplane with a center wing rated to support up to 500,000 pounds. Its engines, landing gear and some flight deck elements were salvaged from 747s.
After launching from Roc at flight levels similar to commercial airliners, Talon-A will fly to altitudes above 50,000 feet, where hypersonic testing conditions are ideal. Two prototype Talon-As are being built at Stratolaunch’s facility in Mojave, California.
Because
it will be autonomous, Talon will not be controlled from Roc or from the
ground. It is designed to have the ability to adjust its flight profile based
on its mission.
The first Talon-A hypersonic flight tests are scheduled to begin next year.
Microsoft
Roots
Created
in 2011, the Stratolaunch company was the brainchild of the late Microsoft
co-founder Paul Allen.
After
his untimely death in 2018, Stratolaunch’s parent company Vulcan sold it to
Cerberus Capital Management the following year.
Roc
will continue to undergo testing while engineers develop Talon-A. In fact, the
massive jet is now being prepped for a new round of test flights, Krevor
said.
“Just
like everyone these days we’re certainly continuing to work through the trials
and tribulations of the COVID pandemic, and so we anticipate flying again
shortly after the new year.“
Ingen kommentarer:
Legg inn en kommentar
Merk: Bare medlemmer av denne bloggen kan legge inn en kommentar.