• Stratolaunch successfully completed two hypersonic test flights of its Talon-A vehicle, achieving Mach 5 speeds and full runway landings.
• The tests were conducted as part of the Pentagon’s MACH-TB program, aiming to increase the cadence of hypersonic testing.
• The reusability of the Talon-A vehicle is expected to significantly reduce the cost of hypersonic testing.

Stratolaunch, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense, has achieved a significant milestone in hypersonic flight testing with the successful completion of two flights of its Talon-A vehicle. These flights, conducted in December 2024 and March 2025, demonstrated the vehicle's ability to reach speeds greater than Mach 5 and perform fully autonomous runway landings. This accomplishment marks the nation's return to reusable hypersonic flight testing and is a crucial step in advancing hypersonic capabilities for the U.S. military.

• What: Two successful hypersonic test flights of the Stratolaunch Talon-A vehicle were conducted, demonstrating reusability and autonomous flight at speeds greater than Mach 5.
• Who: Stratolaunch, U.S. Department of Defense Test Resource Management Center (TRMC), Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane Division (NSWC Crane), Leidos, Stratolaunch CEO Zachary Krevor
• When: December 2024 (first test) and March 2025 (second test)
• Where: Flights launched from the Roc carrier aircraft over the Pacific Ocean and landed at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

The successful hypersonic test flights by Stratolaunch represent a significant advancement in the development of reusable hypersonic technology. The ability to recover and reuse the Talon-A vehicle is expected to reduce the cost of hypersonic testing significantly, making it more accessible for DoD programs. This development comes as the U.S. military is increasingly focused on hypersonic weapons development, driven by advancements made by China and Russia in this area. The MACH-TB program aims to accelerate the development and testing of hypersonic technologies, and Stratolaunch is playing a key role in this effort.

"Demonstrating the reuse of fully recoverable hypersonic test vehicles is an important milestone for MACH-TB. Lessons learned from this test campaign will help us reduce vehicle turnaround time from months down to weeks."

"For the first one or two times going into the hypersonic regime, especially as we’re going faster, it’s a pretty incredible accomplishment."

"We've now demonstrated hypersonic speed, added the complexity of a full runway landing with prompt payload recovery and proven reusability. Both flights were great achievements for our country, our company and our partners."

Stratolaunch's successful hypersonic test flights mark a major step forward in the development of reusable hypersonic technology. The reusability of the Talon-A vehicle promises to lower the cost and increase the frequency of hypersonic testing, which is crucial for the U.S. military's efforts to develop and deploy hypersonic weapons systems. While the company plans to increase the flight cadence and expand the vehicle's flight envelope, these initial tests demonstrate the potential of Stratolaunch's approach to hypersonic testing.