DARPA, the Pentagon’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, unveiled the XRQ-73, a new Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) drone being developed by Northrop Grumman and Scaled Composites, among others.
The XRQ-73 emerged from the SHEPARD (Serial Hybrid Electric Propulsion Aircraft) program, and is an unmanned aircraft weighing about 1,250 pounds in a flying wing format.
The stealth aircraft is apparently powered by two engines, but its distinguishing feature is the hybrid-electric system based on the Great Horned Owl (GHO) program, which gave rise to the XRQ-72, the result of the work of Scaled Composites.
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The GHO was created to make a quieter flight possible by converting the energy generated by combustion into electricity and thus expanding the range of this type of reconnaissance aircraft.
“The idea behind a DARPA X-prime program is to take emerging technologies and burn down system-level integration risks to quickly mature a new missionized long endurance aircraft design that can be fielded quickly,” said Steve Komadina, SHEPARD program manager.
“The SHEPARD program is maturing a specific propulsion architecture and power class as an exemplar of potential benefits for the Department of Defense.”
According to DARPA, the XRQ-73 prototype is expected to fly at the end of 2024, but the next steps of the program have not been disclosed.