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DARPA unveils 6 new designs for uncrewed vertical-takeoff military aircraft

Lightweight fighter aircraft with no pilots could support conventional military missions while being easier to launch and recover.

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has announced it is moving into a new testing phase for proposed experimental aircraft in which designs will be assessed for risk and analyzed for efficiency. Past X-planes include the Bell X-1 — the first crewed vehicle to break the sound barrier in conventional flight — and the X-15, which broke records in aerospace such as previously unachievable airspeeds and the successful use of novel propulsion techniques. DARPA hopes these aircraft could support the U.S. Navy ships to identify vessels beyond their line of sight but also said in a 22 May press release that the U.S. Army, Air Force, Coast Guard and Special Operations Command had registered interest in the program.

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