Stratolaunch, U.S. Air Force Research Lab Announce Contract

The agreement between the company behind the aircraft with the world's largest wingspan and the R&D arm of the Air Force calls for the first flight test of a hypersonic test vehicle.

Kimberly Johnson

Thursday, October 12, 2023 at 04:17 PM ET

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Stratolaunch’s Roc, the world’s largest airplane by wingspan, now includes a new pylon on its center wing. [Courtesy: Stratolaunch]

Key Takeaways:

The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory has contracted Stratolaunch to support the first flight test of its reusable Talon-A (TA-3) hypersonic test vehicle, launched by the Roc aircraft.
Talon-A vehicles are rocket-powered, capable of various hypersonic flight profiles, and carry payload experiments.
The reusability of the Stratolaunch system is critical for increasing the frequency, and reducing the cost and risk of hypersonic testing.
This contract follows Stratolaunch's successful completion of a separation test flight of a Talon-A vehicle from its Roc launch platform in May.

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The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory has entered into a contract with Stratolaunch, the company behind the aircraft with the world’s largest wingspan, to support the first flight test of a hypersonic test vehicle.

The test will involve Stratolaunch’s second reusable Talon-A hypersonic test vehicle, TA-3, which will be launched by Roc, the world’s largest aircraft. The Talon-A vehicles are rocket powered and able to fly a variety of hypersonic flight profiles while carrying payload experiments on board, the company said.