Europe’s Hypersonica completes first test flight

Hypersonica, an Anglo-German defence and aerospace company developing what it describes as a sovereign European hypersonic strike capability, has completed its first hypersonic test flight.

The flight took place on Wednesday at Andøya Space in Norway, the company said in a statement.

According to Hypersonica, it is the first privately funded European defence company to reach this milestone. The company said its missile prototype exceeded Mach 6 and demonstrated a range of more than 300km.

Hypersonica co-founders Dr Philipp Kerth, chief executive, and Dr Marc Ewenz, chief technology officer, said:

- Hypersonica has achieved a major milestone on our pathway to developing Europe’s first sovereign hypersonic strike capability by 2029.

The company said the test flight generated data that will inform the design and development of future high-speed strike systems and improve its ability to analyse adversary weapon profiles.

- As a privately funded start-up, our progress from design to launch in just nine months should recalibrate expectations about the cost and time required to develop this crucial capability.

Proud moment

According to the statement, all systems operated nominally during ascent and descent through the atmosphere. Performance was validated down to subcomponent level at hypersonic speeds.

- This is a proud moment for European defence innovation. As Europeans grounded in the values of freedom and democracy, we pursue this work with a clear sense of responsibility for the safe and principled development of this cutting-edge technology.

Hypersonica aims to field a hypersonic strike capability by 2029.

The company has set out a phased development plan, with successive test flights intended to achieve sustained hypersonic flight, demonstrate advanced flight control at hypersonic speeds, validate complex manoeuvrability and, ultimately, meet full mission requirements.

Hypersonica said its modular architecture allows rapid upgrades and shorter, more cost-efficient development cycles, reducing costs by more than 80% compared with conventional approaches.

It added that this approach would enable Europe to field a hypersonic capability within the timelines set out in NATO and UK 2030 hypersonic frameworks.