BLUF
The X-65 demonstrator drone, an "experimental uncrewed aircraft," will employ compressed air nozzles for maneuvering instead of traditional control surfaces like flaps, rudders, and spoilers. This nozzle-based system aims to reduce weight, fuel consumption, and complexity while also improving aerodynamic geometry for lower radar signatures.Summary
KEY POINTS:
- A DARPA ( Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) project.
- Phase 2 of the Control of Revolutionary Aircraft with Novel Effectors (CRANE) project.
- The front resembles the fictional X-Wing starfighter in Star Wars.
- Boeing subsidiary Aurora Flight Sciences will build the full-sized, uncrewed aircraft.
- The Active Flow Control being tested has military (including tankers) and civilian uses.
References
- AIR AND SPACE POWER: COLLECTIONS | The Runway (airforce.gov.au)
- MAY 2023 Meet the X-65: DARPA’s New Plane Has No External Control Surfaces Air and Space Forces Magazine
- MAY 2023 DARPA Receives X-65 Designation For Active Flow Experiment-Aviation Week Network
