Hermeus Corporation achieved the first flight of its Quarterhorse Mk 1 hypersonic demonstrator on May 27, 2025. Quarterhorse Mk 1 went from a clean sheet to flight-ready in a little over a year. The primary focus of the test campaign was to validate the high-speed takeoff and landing of a large uncrewed aircraft. The first flight was short but proved the aircraft behavior in transition and the short flight modes.
The aircraft’s unique configuration — driven by high-speed flight — makes basic operations of takeoff and landing distinctly challenging. Data from the campaign has validated design and performance models, including aerodynamics, stability, and control. Testing also validated the performance of vehicle subsystems, including propulsion, fuel systems, hydraulics, power, thermal management, avionics, flight software, telemetry, flight termination, and command and control.
Quarterhorse Mk 1 is the first in a series of uncrewed aircraft on Hermeus’ iterative development roadmap. The approach emphasizes ‘hardware richness’ – building multiple prototypes in quick succession, allowing the team to take well-managed technical risk.
The team is actively reviewing data and integrating lessons learned into Hermeus’ next iteration, Quarterhorse Mk 2, currently being manufactured at Hermeus’ headquarters in Atlanta. The scale of an F-16, Quarterhorse Mk 2 is a high-Mach aircraft designed to de-risk uncrewed supersonic flight. It is on-track to fly late this year.
Hermeus is a venture capital-backed aerospace and defense technology company founded to radically accelerate aviation. In the near-term, the business is focused on building high-speed products that sustainably deliver asymmetric advantage to the Department of Defense and allied partners. Utilizing an iterative development approach to aircraft, Hermeus’ high-Mach and hypersonic aircraft aim to deliver capabilities at a pace not seen in the U.S. since the 1950s.
Originally published Hermeus Quarterhorse Mk 1 hypersonic demonstrator Achieves First Flight at Edwards AFB on by https://defense-update.com/20250602_hermeus-quarterhorse-mk-1-hypersonic-demonstrator-achieves-first-flight-at-edwards-afb.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=hermeus-quarterhorse-mk-1-hypersonic-demonstrator-achieves-first-flight-at-edwards-afb at Defense Update
Originally published Defense Update
