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The Airframer Bulletin

DARPA Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
All news ✕ Clear ‹ Current edition

Every Bulletin story and press release covering DARPA Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, newest first.

66 items · page 1 of 2

2026
29 July DARPA has selected Sikorsky's MATRIX autonomy system for all five EVADE programme platforms.

Sikorsky advances Nomad 100 through EVADE testing

The twin prop-rotor combines vertical take-off and landing with fixed-wing speed and range, extending Sikorsky's autonomous aircraft portfolio.

22 July

ReleaseSkyfly Technologies opens its electric propulsion technology to aircraft OEMs and unveils hybrid propulsion system for unmanned aircraft

20 July

ReleaseSikorsky to integrate MATRIX autonomy into BETA Technologies' MV250

14 May DARPA’s XRQ-73 SHEPARD hybrid-electric experimental aircraft takes off at Edwards Air Force Base.

DARPA hybrid-electric UAV takes off from Edwards

The remotely piloted SHEPARD demonstrator completed its April flight at Edwards Air Force Base as propulsion research continued.

6 May

ReleaseOtto Aerospace advances DARPA research with successful laminar-flow aircraft flight test

6 May

ReleaseSHEPARD next-gen hybrid electric uncrewed aircraft takes flight

6 May

DARPA and Northrop Grumman fly XRQ-73 hybrid-electric demonstrator

Hybrid-electric flight testing at Edwards Air Force Base has advanced efforts to develop lower-emission military aircraft with greater operational flexibility.

25 March MATRIX integration will extend autonomy capability across UH-60A, UH-60L and UH-60M variants.

Sikorsky advances Black Hawk autonomy with UH-60MX delivery

The UH-60MX becomes the U.S. Army’s first Black Hawk equipped with full-authority fly-by-wire controls, enabling seamless operation in both piloted and optionally piloted modes.

12 March The X-76 aircraft is designed to cruise at 400–450 knots while retaining vertical lift and runway independent capability.

Bell advances DARPA SPRINT after X-76 design review

Completion of the critical design review allows Bell to begin building the high-speed demonstrator designed for jet-like cruise.

2025
27 October

ReleaseXTI Aerospace and Valkyrie AI announce Vanguard Platform advancing TriFan 600 next-generation VTOL aircraft for commercial and defense applications

9 October The Nomad will serve both defence and civilian organisations worldwide.

Sikorsky expands Nomad family of hybrid-electric VTOLs

Designed to blend helicopter agility with fixed-wing range, the hybrid-electric Nomad family advances autonomous flight across defence and civilian domains.

9 September

ReleaseMORSE Corp wins award for DARPA Albatross program

27 August

ReleaseDARPA selects Q-CTRL to develop next-generation quantum sensors for navigation on advanced defense platforms

10 July Cruise speeds of up to 450 knots are targeted for the vertical lift demonstrator.

Bell enters Phase 2 of DARPA SPRINT X-plane programme

Detailed design and construction has followed conceptual work completed in Phases 1A and 1B under Bell’s decade-long development effort.

26 June

ReleaseAV’s Wildcat reaches key milestones in DARPA’s ANCILLARY program’s EVADE demonstration

6 May

ReleaseDistribute logistics, save fuel, sustain airpower

29 April

ReleaseHigh-speed vertical lift concept completes wind tunnel testing

2024
12 December

Bell completes tunnel testing to validate stop/fold jet transition

Building upon the previous folding rotor testing, the wind tunnel program validated the stability and control of the aircraft through the rotor fold and unfold sequence in flight.

9 December

ReleaseFAST Labs research and development organization awarded $12 million contract from DARPA

16 October DEVCOM’s MX Black Hawk aircraft to be equipped with the MATRIX autonomy system.

DARPA taps Sikorsky to add autonomy to U.S. Army Black Hawk

Designated MX, the upgraded aircraft will enable the U.S. Army to test and evaluate a wide range of autonomy capabilities, from single pilot operation to fully uninhabited flight.

10 October Fan-in-wing technology powers Aurora’s concept for unprecedented speed and stealth in a vertical lift platform.

Aurora reveals fan-in-wing design progress

Fan-in-wing technology combines an embedded lift fan with a blended wing body design to enable vertical lift agility without sacrificing the payload capacity and aerodynamic efficiency.

24 September

ReleaseLiberty Lifter: transforming fast logistics at sea

10 September

ReleaseBAE Systems awarded $4 million from DARPA for tactical autonomy program

28 August The Electronically-Scanned Multifunction Reconfigurable Integrated Sensor (EMRIS) in a Northrop Grumman testing range.

Northrop Grumman demonstrates ultra-wideband multifunction sensor

The flights demonstrated the open architecture nature of EMRIS by using third-party integration and operation. New software was rapidly deployed during flights, demonstrating the reconfigurable nature of the sensor.

10 July

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman builds next-generation hybrid electric uncrewed X-plane for DARPA

26 June The Series Hybrid Electric Propulsion AiRcraft Demonstration program, known as SHEPARD, sees its hybrid-electric uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) receive its official X-plane designation, XRQ-73.

DARPA dubs its newest X-plane XRQ-73

The XRQ-73 aircraft will be a Group 3 UAS weighing approximately 1,250 pounds, which draws on the earlier AFRL/IARPA Great Horned Owl (GHO) project. First flight is expected by year-end 2024.

13 June

ReleaseMerlin signs agreement for strategic acquisition of EpiSci

12 June

ReleaseEpiSci selected for DARPA Artificial Intelligence Reinforcements program

29 May ANCILLARY design concept renderings from all six performers, clockwise from lower left: Sikorsky, Karem Aircraft, Griffon Aerospace, Method Aeronautics, AeroVironment and Northrop Grumman.

DARPA shows concepts for the future of VTOL uncrewed aerial systems

In Phase Ib, six companies - AeroVironment, Griffon Aerospace, Karem Aircraft, Method Aeronautics, Northrop Grumman and Sikorsky - will mature their X-plane designs.

28 May

ReleaseAV to develop its Wildcat autonomous VTOL UAS for DARPA’s ANCILLARY program

28 May

ReleaseBell awarded funding for phase 1B of DARPA Speed and Runway Independent Technologies (SPRINT) X-Plane program

22 May

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman's autonomous VTOL X-Plane advances to next design phase for DARPA

22 May

ReleaseSikorsky flight-tests scalable 'rotor blown wing' UAS for DARPA project

25 March

ReleaseOtto Aviation selected by the Operational Energy Capability Improvement Fund (OECIF) for Energy Web Aircraft (EWA) program

7 March

ReleaseVenus Aerospace achieves the first long-duration engine test of their RDRE in partnership with DARPA.

8 February

ReleaseBell demonstrates High-Speed Vertical Takeoff and Landing (HSVTOL) technology at Holloman Air Force Base

2023
30 November Bell's contender, involving folding rotors.

Four contenders launch SPRINT x-plane projects

Bell is currently conducting risk reduction testing at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico to demonstrate its folding rotor, integrated propulsion, and flight control technologies using a dedicated test article.

22 November The project aims to design, build, and fly an X-Plane to demonstrate technologies and integrated concepts necessary for a transformational combination of aircraft speed and runway independence.

Aurora to design high-speed vertical lift X-Plane

Design work will take place at Aurora Flight Sciences and Boeing facilities across states including Virginia, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. The program is targeting first flight of the demonstrator within 42 months.

11 September

ReleaseGA-ASI poised to begin LongShot flight testing phase

24 August BAE Systems will develop technology aimed at enabling the deployment of advanced signal processing and computation on a new smaller category of military platforms.

BAE contract targets advanced signal processing and computation

Smaller and more efficient systems will improve size, weight, power and costs to allow for full-spectrum signal processing closer to the edge, or on platforms operating in denied airspace.

19 July The UAS would be able to launch and recover from ship flight decks and small austere land locations in adverse weather without additional infrastructure equipment.

DARPA tasks Northrop Grumman with naval VTOL design

Northrop Grumman has been entrusted with the task to design an autonomous vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) uncrewed aircraft system capable of operating from a moving Navy ship at sea.

22 June

ReleaseANCILLARY project selects teams to develop initial concepts for VTOL X-Plane

8 June In the centre holding scissors: U.S. Representative Chrissy Houlahan, with Frederick Weyerhaeuser Piaseck (Chairman of the Board and Chief Technology Officer at PiAC) to the left and John Weyerhaeuser Piasecki (President and Chief Executive Officer at PiAC) to the right, also holding scissors.

Piasecki sets up shop in former Sikorsky factory

The company will transform the 219,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility into an advanced R&D centre for next-generation VTOL aircraft, Unmanned Aerial Systems and related enabling technologies.

24 May

ReleaseExosonic and EpiSci to partner on supersonic autonomy

1 February

ReleaseGA-ASI selected by DARPA to support Liberty Lifter program

2022
10 November Sikorsky demonstrates to the U.S. Army for the first time how an optionally piloted Black Hawk helicopter flying in autonomous mode could resupply forward forces. These uninhabited Black Hawk flights occurred in October at Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona. Photo: Sikorsky.

Partners prove more potential for the unmanned Black Hawk

Sikorsky is partnered with DARPA to develop autonomy technology to improve the flight safety and efficiency of rotary and fixed-wing aircraft. Sikorsky's MATRIX technology forms the core of DARPA's ALIAS project.

17 August

ReleaseBAE Systems to develop leap-forward technology for next-generation radar and communications systems

26 May The Liberty Lifter is to operate at sea for weeks at a time without land-based maintenance activities.

DARPA proposes simple sea-skimming freighter

The Liberty Lifter will operate in turbulent seas by creating high-lift abilities at low speeds to reduce wave impact load during takeoff/landing, and innovative design solutions to absorb wave forces.

11 May

ReleaseWind tunnel testing advances development of Aurora's active flow control X-Plane

10 February The UH-60 Black Hawk successfully flew for 30 minutes without anyone onboard.

Crewless Black Hawk flight proves DARPA's concept

ALIAS is designed for existing manned aircraft, enabling safe reduced crew operations. Adding high levels of automation, it also provides a platform for integrating autonomous capabilities tailored for specific missions.