Stratolaunch Talon-A2 Completes Two Hypersonic Test Flights

Stratolaunch successfully conducted two test flights of its reusable, autonomous hypersonic vehicle, the Talon-A2, for the U.S. Department of Defense in December 2024 and March 2025. These flights, the first with a fully recoverable hypersonic aircraft in the U.S. since 1968, saw the Talon-A2 launched from the Roc carrier aircraft and reaching speeds above Mach 5 over the Pacific Ocean before autonomously landing at Vandenberg Space Force Base. The tests, part of the Pentagon’s Multi-Service Advanced Capability Hypersonics Test Bed (MACH-TB) project, demonstrated hypersonic speed, runway landing, rapid payload recovery, and vehicle reusability. Officials emphasized that these advances will enable faster turnaround times, lower costs, and accelerate the development of advanced hypersonic capabilities for national security. The MACH-TB program is managed by Leidos, with Stratolaunch as a subcontractor, and provides a platform for government, industry, and academia to advance hypersonic technologies. The successful tests are seen as a major step in reestablishing U.S. leadership in hypersonic flight experimentation.