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SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service is now being used by supersonic and hypertonic commercial aircraft developers on their test vehicles. Two firms, Boom Supersonic and Hermeus, which are developing new aircraft capable of traveling supersonically and hypersonically, have installed Starlink terminals and used the service on their test beds and support aircraft. Hermeus, a Georgia-based firm that aims to develop the world's first hypertonic civilian aircraft, is currently testing its Quarterhorse Mk1 prototype, and it successfully taxied the aircraft with Starlink, according to CEO AJ Piplica.
Boom Supersonic, on the other hand, integrated a Starlink dish on its observation aircraft for the tests of the XB-1 prototype and flew the dish at 0.95 Mach as part of preparations for a supersonic live stream using Starlink.
SpaceX's Starlink Taxis Hypersonic Aircraft Test Prototype & Flies At 0.95 Mach On Chase Plane
Hermeus' Piplica revealed on X that his firm had installed and tested a Starlink dish on an aircraft in record time. Piplica's firm is developing the Halcyon aircraft, which it hopes will be the first hypersonic passenger aircraft in human history. To develop Halcyon, and the Darkhorse uncrewed military jet, Hermeus is currently working on the Quarterhorse Mk 1 prototype.
The Mk1 is the first Quarterhorse test bed aircraft designed for flight. Hermeus unveiled the Mk1 in March and shared that the aircraft will initially test high-speed takeoff and landing. Since Mk1 is an unscrewed aircraft, Hermeus will remotely control it. The aircraft will be tested at the Edwards Air Force base, and according to Hermeus' CEO, his firm installed a SpaceX Starlink terminal on the aircraft in a record 17 days.
Piplica shared that his firm's journey to integrate Starlink on the Mk1 started with the need for a beyond-visual-range-line-of-sight (BVLOS) communications system on the plane. BVLOS is indispensable for Mk1's tests since the aircraft has to be remotely operated, and two days after Hermeus decided to use Starlink, SpaceX delivered the terminals to the company. After seven days, Hermeus ran simulations of the Mk1 and Starlink, and it completed Starlink integration on the Mk1 six days later. At the same time, the firm also tested an Mk1 mockup in a wind tunnel with the Starlink dish placed at the top of the plane after its vertical stabilizer.
The following day, Hermeus successfully taxied the Mk1 by controlling it through a Starlink connection. After conducting ground station, subsystem, and other tests this year, the firm aims to run the first Mk1 flight test in 2025.
While Hermeus is yet to fly a Starlink terminal in its test program, soon after Piplica and his company's revelations, supersonic aircraft developer Boom Supersonic shared how it is using Starlink in its development program. CEO Blake Scholl outlined on X that his firm had installed a Starlink mini terminal on its T-38 aircraft and tested it in just 15 days. These tests are part of Boom Supersonic's goal of live streaming the XB-1 test aircraft's first supersonic test flight.
Boom's XB-1 is a one-third-scale prototype of the firm's Overture commercial airliner design. It plans to run flight tests on the plane next year. According to Scholl, his company procured a Starlink mini terminal and "tested it in motion on a Miata, 3D-printed a custom mount, integrated it into our T-38 and conducted speed tests at 0.95 Mach" in just 15 days.
Quarterhorse Mk 1 is one of the first uncrewed jets to be operated over @Starlink. Thanks @SpaceX for building really useful things.
SATCOM integration and operations like this have taken other organizations years to accomplish.
We did it in 17 days. Here's how we did it:🧵 https://t.co/qlZiYESvv3
— AJ Piplica (@AJ_Piplica) November 15, 2024
About the author: Ramish is a seasoned technology writer and editor with more than a decade of experience. He specializes in semiconductor fabrication and market analysis. With a background in finance and supply chain management - via his bachelors in Finance and a micromasters in supply chain management from MIT - Ramish combines financial rigor with deep industry insight to deliver accurate and authoritative coverage.
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