Stratolaunch announces $90.8M contract award under MACH-TB 2.0 Task 3 for air-launched capability test vehicles

Stratolaunch announces its extended partnership in the Multi-Service Advanced Capability Hypersonics Test Bed (MACH-TB) 2.0 program, awarded on September 30, 2025, by the Department of War's Test Resource Management Center (TRMC) through the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Crane's S²MARTS (Strategic & Spectrum Missions Advanced Resilient Trusted Systems) Other Transaction Agreement (OTA).

This new award extends Stratolaunch's partnership in the MACH-TB initiative to further advance hypersonic flight testing and technology development. Under MACH-TB 2.0 Task 3, Stratolaunch will conduct multiple air-launched flight tests over a two-year period, reinforcing the company's commitment to providing flexible, high-cadence hypersonic test solutions that accelerate innovation in advanced aerospace technologies, building on the demonstrated success of the Talon-A.

Stratolaunch successfully achieved reusability in hypersonic flight test with its fully autonomous Talon-A2 (TA-2). These missions, air-launched from the Roc carrier aircraft, collected critical data on the hypersonic flight environment, advanced materials, and systems. The repeated recovery of TA-2 underscored its reusability and significantly advanced the understanding of hypersonic flight.

"Stratolaunch is proud to continue our partnership and contribute our expertise to this vital national defense priority," said Dr. Zachary Krevor, CEO and President of Stratolaunch. "Our fully reusable, air-launch platform offers unmatched flexibility and frequency for hypersonic flight testing, which is essential for accelerating the development of advanced high-speed technologies for the United States."

"The success of our TA-2 flights demonstrated our readiness to support the hypersonic flight test goals of MACH-TB," Dr. Krevor added. "We look forward to working alongside our government and industry partners to push the boundaries of high-speed flight."

The MACH-TB program is a collaborative effort involving multiple government agencies and industry partners, focused on building a robust and responsive hypersonic test infrastructure. Stratolaunch's involvement will support the program's objectives by providing a cost-effective, scalable, and repeatable platform for a range of hypersonic experiments.