This Is What The XS-1 Experimental Spaceplane Could Look Like

Northrop Grumman has shown off what it believes the military spaceplane of the future should look like, a futuristic and reusable aircraft designed as part of a $3.9m DARPA contract. The Experimental Spaceplane XS-1 would automate a large percentage of flight, as well as kick-start hypersonic aircraft development once more, Northrop Grumman claims, though the company still has competition.

Three firms are competing at the DARPA phase one stage, including Boeing and Masten Space Systems. The goal is to convince the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency that their design has the most to recommend it, and go on to be the single company responsible for developing the actual XS-1 over the next few years.

DARPA is asking a fair amount in return, however. The XS-1 needs to be able to fly ten times in ten days, with minimal ground crew and infrastructure requirements.

Northrop Grumman's idea would, it says, use a transporter erector launcher, and land and recover on standard runways. It would be highly autonomous, building on the company's existing work with drones and aircraft.

Meanwhile, it could also borrow technologies from SpaceShipTwo, the Virgin Galactic commercial spaceplane that Northrop Grumman helped develop.

XS-1 would rely upon a reusable booster and an expendable upper stage, together capable of lifting a 3,000 pound class craft into low Earth orbit. With that, DARPA expects costs of military and commercial light spacecraft launches to be cut by a factor of ten.

Whichever firm clinches the contract, DARPA aims to have the XS-1 complete its first orbital mission in 2018.

SOURCE Northop Grumman