The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is preparing to launch two prototype hypersonic vehicles by the end of 2019, National Defense Magazine reported Wednesday. Steven Walker, DARPA director and 2019 Wash100 Award winner, told reporters that both Hypersonic Air-Breathing Weapon Concept and Tactical Boost Glide programs are progressing on schedule.
“We’re on track for both to have flights … before the calendar year ends,†he said at a breakfast meeting in Washington, D.C.Â
He added the schedule may be delayed to 2020 if construction and qualification activities don’t go according to plan. The HAWC unit would function as an aircraft-launched, self-powered vehicle, while TBG would launch from a rocket, the report noted.
