The companies Boom Supersonic and Hermeus, which develop supersonic and hypersonic commercial aircraft, respectively, use SpaceX Starlink satellite Internet in the process of testing new products. One of the companies installed a Starlink terminal on board its prototype, and the other installed it on an escort aircraft. Among other things, this shows that satellite Internet is capable of operating at enormous speed.
Image source: Boom Supersonic
A prototype unmanned aircraft called the Quarterhorse Mk1, which uses Starlink for communications, is currently undergoing successful testing, according to AJ Piplica, CEO of Georgia-based Hermeus, which is trying to build the world’s first civilian hypersonic aircraft. As for Boom Supersonic, the company deployed a Starlink terminal in a surveillance aircraft that was used during testing of the XB-1 prototype aircraft. The terminal operated at an airspeed of Mach 0.95 in preparation for providing communications during the online broadcast of supersonic test flights.
In a recent post by Hermeus on social media X, the company installed and tested the Starlink terminal on its aircraft in record time. The company is developing the Halcyon aircraft, which it hopes will be the first ever hypersonic passenger aircraft. To create this aircraft, as well as the Darkhorse military uncrewed aircraft, the company is currently testing the Quarterhorse Mk1 prototype. This prototype was the first intended for flight testing. In March of this year, Hermeus unveiled the Mk1 and said that initial takeoff and landing testing would take place at Edwards Air Force Base.
Starlink terminal integrated into Hermeus aircraft prototype
Later, the head of the company reported that it was possible to integrate the Starlink terminal into the prototype aircraft in a record 17 days. Hermeus engineers’ work to integrate the Starlink terminal into the aircraft began when the company required a beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone control system for its Mk1 prototype. Two days after the order was placed, SpaceX delivered the terminal, seven days were spent simulating the integration of the terminal into Mk1, and after another six days the integration was completely completed. A little later, tests were carried out in a wind tunnel, and the Starlink antenna was placed at the top of the aircraft immediately after the vertical stabilizer. The next day, the company successfully tested the Mk1 remote control on the ground. It is planned to test the operation of all subsystems by the end of the year, and the first flight tests in unmanned mode will take place in 2025.
While Hermeus is just getting ready to test Starlink in the skies, Boom Supersonic hasn’t stood still either. Company CEO Blake Scholl said it took 15 days to integrate the Starlink terminal into the systems of the T-38 aircraft. The company is seeking to use Starlink satellite internet to livestream the first supersonic test flight of the XB-1, a 1:3 scale prototype of the Overture commercial airliner. This flight is due to take place next year.