Hermeus

Hypersonic aircraft developer Hermeus has unveiled its first flying test vehicle—Quarterhorse Mk. 1—at its Atlanta facility.

The startup details the Quarterhorse flight-test plan as concept design work accelerates for the follow-on Darkhorse hypersonic cruiser.

Under HyCAT, Hermeus says it will use its high-Mach-capable Quarterhorse vehicle to demonstrate key "enabling technologies for operational hypersonic aircraft."

The Quarterhorse Mk 0 is a less than 40-ft.-long mockup featuring the turbine-based combined cycle (TBCC) Chimera 1 engine.

Aircraft startup Hermeus received the first military turbofan that will be integrated into the engine core for the hypersonic Darkhorse uncrewed aerial system.

Hypersonic aircraft developer Hermeus expects to receive Pratt & Whitney’s F100-229 military turbofan for tests later this year.