Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)

After its Lift Challenge came tantalizingly close to demonstrating that a drone can lift four times its own weight, DARPA has launched a program to mature the technology for military and commercial applications.

The competition narrowly misses the target of quadrupling drone payload-to-weight ratio.

DARPA is preparing to launch a new demonstrator program for a “revolutionary” hypersonic cruise missile, telling industry that the agency is seeking radical advances in speed, range and possibly altitude.

DARPA’s Lift Challenge pushes drone payload-to-weight limits, with Avidrone winning by carrying 3.84 times its weight over a 5-mi. course.

Sikorsky has completed initial ground and flight testing of a larger version of its Nomad rotor-blown-wing, VTOL uncrewed aircraft system.

A project to develop an autonomous capability for orchestrating complex, large-scale air combat scenarios has entered flight testing on a group of six Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 42 fighters.

Northrop Grumman expects to launch its in-space robotic servicer no earlier than July 21 at 5:15 p.m. EDT, the company announced July 13.

Airbus has wound up its Acubed innovation unit in the U.S., established in 2015 to connect the European aerospace giant with the fast-moving, disruptive thinking of Silicon Valley.

General Atomics sees air-recoverable uncrewed aircraft systems extending the reach of MQ-9 payloads.

DARPA is exploring options for installing tactical high-energy laser systems on Collaborative Combat Aircraft and ground vehicles for self-defense.

The cloud-based software is intended to allow space tech developers to test interoperability before flight.

Quantum sensing technology that a DARPA official described as the “end of stealth” is moving out the laboratory and into operational testing.

Scaled Composites built the flying-wing UAS under a DARPA project to demonstrate hybrid propulsion.

DARPA's Sprint project develops a high-speed tiltrotor to address contested logistics and runway vulnerabilities with advanced V/STOL technology.

Hybrid-electric Shepard; deployable electric high-lift; laminar-flow UAS; and Leonardo’s advanced tiltrotor.

DARPA wants the ability to autonomously store, launch and recover swarms of Group 1 through 3 drones.

Otto Aerospace has completed flight tests of an uncrewed aircraft designed around its drag-reducing natural laminar flow technology.

The U.S. Air Force wants to retire all of its E-11A Battlefield Airborne Communications Nodes in 2028 as it shifts this role to space.

DLR has begun flying the Proteus, an uncrewed aircraft designed to fly with either a reference conventional wing or an experimental morphing wing.

DARPA has revealed interest in developing a new class of air-to-air missiles in which the top design requirement is mass production rather than maximizing performance.

Nuclear fusion rocket power; Matrix autonomy joins the Army; ship-to-shore contested logistics; and sulfur’s role in contrails formation.

Gulf airlines continue to face heavy disruption, while U.S. carriers deal with a fuel cost surge and must compete against largely hedged European airlines.

Stop-fold tiltrotor becomes X-76; Sikorsky tests hybrid powertrain; light-driven SAF production; and from nuclear power to liquid fuel.

The stop-fold tiltrotor uncrewed aircraft under development by Bell for a DARPA project to fly a high-speed VTOL demonstrator has been designated the X-76.

Singaporean eVTOL demonstrator; missile-launching uncrewed X-plane; BWB goes double-deck; and cheaper SAF by co-electrolysis.