Airbus Defence & Space has tested a SpacePlane demonstrator vehicle dropped from a helicopter 100km off the coast of Singapore.
The work took place in early May and involved hoisting the vehicle aloft from a barge with an Airbus Helicopters AS350 Ecureill helicopter and then releasing at 3,000 metres, says Airbus Military in a statement.
All images from Airbus Defence & Space
Upon release, it was guided down to the sea by a controller aboard the barge and later picked up. The work involved seven ships, and was supported by Singapore’s Economic Development Board.
The test was designed to explore the vehicle’s end-of-flight phase after a return from outer space.
“The quarter-scale demonstrator used in the tests was built in partnership with HOPE Technik and Airbus Group Innovations, the corporate network of research centres of Airbus Group,” adds Airbus.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
