Staying away from the recent speculation about the SR-72 (but will briefly quote the part that has cause all the buzz):
Ja
ck O’Bannion, VP of Strategy at Skunk Works, is speaking today at SciTech conference. He showed a slide of the SR-72 and said: “Without digital transformation that aircraft you see there could not have been made.” “Now we can digitally print that engine with an incredibly sophisticated cooling system integral into the material of the engine itself and have that engine survive for multiple firings for routine operation,” “We couldn’t have made the engine itself—it would have melted down into slag if we had tried to produce it five years ago,”
At the very least, it would suggest that a prototype engine has been produced which lends credence to rumors the alleged ground testing for the combined cycle engine happened.
Here is a very brief look at some of the articles and patents associated with the combined cycle hypersonic propulsion from Aerojet Rocketdyne (and previous hypersonic testing) and Aerodyne’s research into the engine. It would appear to be a Pratt-Aerodyne partnership on propulsion with L-M designed common inlet and nozzle, Rolls-Royce & GE haven’t been mentioned since previous FALCON project.
First off: Airforce research lab presentation (lots of interesting nuggets about propulsion, materials, thermal management)- probably posted by B-I-O at some point but worth another look:
http://www.defenseinnovationmarketplace.mil/resources/AFRL_NextGenerationAerospaceSystems.pdf
L-M SR-72 and previous Blackswift
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/lockheed-pushing-1-billion-mach-6-airbreather-423198/
https://futurism.com/lockheed-confirms-secretive-sr-72-hypersonic-plane-will-be-made/
Aerojet rocketdyne patents:
https://www.google.com/patents/US8701379
https://www.google.com/patents/US7216474
https://www.google.com/patents/US7762077
L-M, Aerodyne team & Pratt :
http://aviationweek.com/defense/aerojet-rocketdyne-demo-combined-cycle-hypersonic-engine
http://www.rocket.com/article/darpa-awards-aerojet-rocketdyne-contract-develop-hypersonic-advanced-full-range-engine
https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2017/10/aerojet-rocketdyne-will-test-hypersonic-advanced-full-range-engine.html
https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2011/06/aerojet-has-new-mach-7-plus-reusable.html
Propulsion part of Blackswift program:
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/pratt-whitney-rocketdyne-tests-dual-mode-ramjet-fo-216870/
I will add to this as I find more, obviously there are going to be highly speculative aspects as: There have been multiple projects over the last 15 years and not all feed directly into the SR-72, it is a black project so even contractors are going to be hard to identify.
By: n9nu - 16th January 2025 at 21:46
Just like the ‘Aurora’; which was a code name in a budget for the development of the B2 Stealth Bomber. Everyone was convinced the large amounts of $$$ were for a hypersonic ISR type aircraft. Whoops. The misinformation worked perfectly .
Don’t expect to see a ‘manned’ or unmanned UAV hypersonic craft for sometime.
I sure as hell would want to be in it versus sitting at a console controlling it. Lol. I been flying since high school and then moved into the USAF and eventually to a test pilot type role for a certain company.
Tim S Dickerson, CEM,
ARS: N9NU. GRID: EN51
By: Vahe.D - 28th September 2024 at 18:14
From Sandboxx:
Lockheed Martin’s mysterious hypersonic aircraft known as SR-72 appears to be continuing its march toward service, but the program is not immune from the Air Force’s broader budgetary woes.
Sandboxx News has covered the secretive development of SR-72, Lockheed Martin’s hypersonic successor to the legendary SR-71 Blackbird, and its potential path toward service in the not-too-distant future. Now, new evidence has come to light that suggests this exotic new aircraft program is facing compounding budgetary shortfalls, which could further complicate matters for the Air Force as it struggles to find ways to fund a bevy of high-profile new efforts, including new ICBMs, stealth bombers, and air superiority fighters.
Lockheed Martin used “SR-72” as an informal umbrella moniker for its design studies in the 2006-2009 timeframe for a hypersonic ISR vehicle derived from the Blackswift and HCV.
https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/threads/lockheed-martin-sr-72.1985/pag…
By: FBW - 21st June 2018 at 12:14
Lol. Two contracts totaling $10 million is nothing more than incentive for the two contractors to spend more of their own money.
Obviously the recent news is only one of several contracts. IIRC, the testing is scheduled for 2019. Both of the above have TBCC concepts. Both have done wind tunnel and ground testing.
By: djcross - 21st June 2018 at 02:49
Lol. Two contracts totaling $10 million is nothing more than incentive for the two contractors to spend more of their own money.
By: FBW - 20th June 2018 at 15:03
“Two contract awards worth a total of $10 million for design and testing of a dual mode ramjet are now anticipated, the USAF’s Air Force Research Laboratory says in a notice dated 8 June”
Aerojet and Orbital ATK I assume. They had previous DARPA contracts.
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January 18, 2018 at 4:13 pm