Agency Awards Contracts to Study Affordable Hypersonic Flight Testing

NASA has awarded two contracts totaling $1.7 million to study affordable hypersonic flight testing methods. The agency aims to bridge the gap between laboratory testing and full-scale flight programs by adapting commercially developed platforms. SpaceWorks Enterprises and Stratolaunch will examine their respective X-60 platform and Talon-A test vehicle, respectively. NASA officials emphasize that the goal is not to field an operational vehicle but to define what kind of flight-test infrastructure would make hypersonic development more predictable and affordable. This initiative may feed into a future NASA program known as Making Advancements in Commercial Hypersonics (MACH), which aims to support commercial hypersonic development.