Stratolaunch Completes Vital Test of Launch System for Hypersonic Vehicles

A successful separation test clears the way for a move toward hypersonic flight.

Jonathan Welsh

Monday, May 15, 2023 at 04:35 PM ET

Verified

Stratolaunch successfully releases the TA-0 test vehicle. [Courtesy: Stratolaunch]

Key Takeaways:

Stratolaunch successfully completed a test flight where the Talon-A (TA-0) test vehicle separated from the Roc flying launch platform.
The four-hour, eight-minute flight confirmed clean separation and proper communications systems for data collection.
The successful test paves the way for Stratolaunch's next goal: achieving hypersonic flight with the TA-1 vehicle this summer.
This was the 11th test flight for Roc and the second at Vandenberg Space Force Base.

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Aerospace company Stratolaunch LLC said it completed a test flight during which its Talon-A test vehicle, called TA-0, successfully separated from its Roc flying launch platform.

The flight, which took place over the Vandenberg Space Force Base’s western range off the central coast of California, was the 11th test sortie for Roc and the second time the group has carried out flight operations at Vandenberg.