Australian aerospace company Hypersonix Launch Systems has set a late February launch window for a hypersonic flight test of its DART AE vehicle, marking the first planned flight of the scramjet-powered aircraft. The mission, Cassowary Vex, is expected to lift off from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2 at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Wallops Island, Virginia. The launch itself, dubbed “That’s Not a Knife,” will be conducted aboard a suborbital rocket with Rocket Lab.
The company has not set specific dates yet, but said it will provide more details towards the end of the month.
The test flight will deploy the company’s 3.5-meter DART AE aircraft. It aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the aircraft’s propulsion, materials, sensors and guidance systems during a hypersonic operation. DART AE is powered by a SPARTAN scramjet engine using hydrogen fuel, which does not include any moving parts in its design.
Hypersonix co-founder Dr. Michael Smart said the mission will assess performance in conditions that cannot be duplicated on the ground.
“DART AE allows us to validate propulsion, materials and control systems at speeds and temperatures that simply can’t be replicated on the ground,” Smart said.
Hypersonix CEO Matt Hill said the flight represents an important step in the company’s development program.
“This flight reflects years of engineering work and the confidence of our partners at DIU, NASA and Rocket Lab,” Hill said
The test is part of a broader effort to advance reusable hypersonic systems and follows a recent funding round at the company in support of continued development and manufacturing activities. Hypersonix says its longer-range vision is to employ the technology to “fly to space.”
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