Unmanned aerial vehicle Talon-A lands after hypersonic flight
Talon-A is an unmanned hypersonic aircraft from the US aerospace company Stratolaunch. It flies faster than Mach 5 and lands like an airplane.
Talon-A2 hypersonic aircraft
(Image: Stratolaunch)
The Talon-A unmanned aerial vehicle has completed its hypersonic flight. The aircraft, developed by the US aviation company Stratolaunch, landed for the first time afterward.
During the test flight, Talon-A2 reached more than Mach 5, i.e. more than five times the speed of sound, which is over 6100 km/h. It then landed automatically at Vandenberg Air Force Base in the US state of California. This was first achieved in December last year. According to Stratolaunch, the new flight demonstrated the reusability of the aircraft.
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The Talon-A hypersonic aircraft is 8.50 meters long and has a wingspan of 3.40 meters. It takes off from the Stratolaunch Carrier transport aircraft. This is a twin-fuselage aircraft named Roc after the giant bird from the story of "Sinbad the Sailor". It takes the Talon-A into the air and places it at around 7000 meters. After separation, Talon-A starts its engine and accelerates to several times the speed of sound.
Talon-A flew faster than before
This was first achieved in March 2024 with its predecessor Talon-A1, which subsequently sank in the Pacific Ocean. In December, Talon-A2 flew for the first time and then landed. On this third flight, which, as Stratolaunch has only just announced, took place in March, the hypersonic aircraft flew faster than on the previous flights. As before, Stratolaunch is keeping the exact details secret – The program is being carried out on behalf of the US military.
"We demonstrated hypersonic speed, added complex landing with immediate payload recovery, and proved reusability," said Stratolaunch CEO Zachary Krevor. "With the data we collected from this second flight, we can use the lessons learned to improve the strength and performance of the Talon-A aircraft."
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Talon-A is the first time the US military has had a reusable hypersonic aircraft since the end of the X-15 program. X-15 was a high-altitude, high-speed research aircraft. The three aircraft built were used to prepare for the Apollo program, among other things, and were in use from 1959 to 1968. The pilots included Neil Armstrong, who was the first man to set foot on the moon. The X-15s reached a maximum speed of 7274 km/h (Mach 6.72) and an altitude of 107.96 kilometers.
(wpl)
