Hermeus

Hermeus has stolen another quick march on its way to building a hypersonic aircraft as it begins testing its proprietary precooler on a Pratt & Whitney F100 jet engine that will be installed in the company's Quarterhorse Mk 2 prototype.

Atlanta company Hermeus has its sights set on Mach 4 next year, to beat the Mach 3.3 benchmark set by the SR-71 Blackbird way back in 1976. Watch its Chimera hybrid engine nailing the switch between low-speed turbojet mode and hypersonic ramjet mode.

Aerospace startup Hermeus recently unveiled a full-size, partly-functional mock-up of its highly-streamlined, delta-winged Quarterhorse hypersonic aircraft before an invited audience of dignitaries, who were treated to the firing of an inbuilt test engine.

The US Air Force has awarded US$60 million to aerospace startup Hermeus for flight testing of its hypersonic aircraft for military and commercial applications. Capable of flying at Mach 5, the Quarterhorse will be the world's fastest reusable aircraft.