Bell Textron has completed the Critical Design Review for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Speed and Runway Independent Technologies (SPRINT) program. The milestone clears the way for construction of the project’s X-76 technology demonstrator.
Introducing our latest X-Plane, the X-76! ⚡
— DARPA (@DARPA) March 9, 2026
Part of a joint effort with @USSOCOM on the SPRINT program, this experimental aircraft is being built by @BellFlight to demonstrate runway-independent, high-speed flight. pic.twitter.com/hBnDzjcHAO
The aircraft is part of a joint DARPA and U.S. Special Operations Command effort aimed at developing a platform that can combine high cruise speeds with the ability to hover and operate from unprepared surfaces. Bell said the review marked the transition to the next stage of the program after the aircraft received its official X-plane designation.
The SPRINT program kicked-off its first phase in November 2023, and DARPA selected Bell Textron and Aurora Flight Sciences in May 2024 to continue preliminary design work under Phase 1B. In June 2025, DARPA chose Bell to move forward into Phases 2 and 3, making it the sole remaining performer in the competition. Phase 2 covers final design, construction and ground testing of the demonstrator, while Phase 3 is expected to include flight testing.
“Bell is honored to receive the X-76 designation and continue the spirit of American innovation honoring the founding of the United States in 1776,” Bell Senior Vice President of Engineering Jason Hurst said.
DARPA said the X-76 will enable the demonstrator program to validate technologies that could allow aircraft to cruise at 400 to 450 knots while operating from and to austere environments.
“For too long, the runway has been both an enabler and a tether, granting speed but creating a critical vulnerability,” DARPA SPRINT program manager Cmdr. Ian Higgins said.
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