US launches hypersonic space plane program

The XS-1 spacecraft program promises to help the US reduce costs and risks when launching satellites in the future.

Simulation of XS-1 operation

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)The Pentagon has selected Boeing to design and build a new hypersonic spacecraft called "Phantom Express". It is capable of reaching high altitudes to launch satellites into Earth orbit, then return and land like a conventional aircraft, according to Popular Mechanics.

The Experimental Spacecraft (XS-1) program will launch a small rocket after reaching an altitude of over 100 kilometers. The rocket will put the satellite into orbit, while the spacecraft will return to Earth and land on a runway. DARPA hopes that XS-1 will help the US Department of Defense be ready to launch satellites into orbit within days, instead of months as it is now. The XS-1 spacecraft is expected to be able to land and re-launch within hours.

"XS-1 is a combination of traditional aircraft and conventional launchers, with the goal of reducing the cost of launching satellites by a factor of 10, as well as shortening the preparation time. We are very pleased with the progress of the first phase," said Jess Sponable, XS-1 program manager at DARPA.

Unlike the US Air Force's X-37B aircraft, which must use an Atlas V rocket, the XS-1 will launch itself using its own engine using liquid oxygen and hydrogen fuel. The Phantom Express is about the size of a commercial airliner and can fly at supersonic speeds of over 6,125 km/h before launching a 1,360 kg satellite into low Earth orbit.

The XS-1 spacecraft flies into orbit carrying a satellite on its back. Graphics: DARPA.

Phase two of the program includes design, manufacturing and testing with 10 test launches of the propulsion system. This phase will last throughout 2019 before Boeing and the US Department of Defense conduct flight tests in phase three in 2020.

If successful, DARPA expects the XS-1 program to cost less than $5 million per launch. In addition to military uses, DARPA plans to share the design with commercial aerospace companies to reduce costs.

According to VNE