X-65 Aircraft. © Aurora Flight Sciences
The new X-65 aircraft is being built to test active flow control — a system that uses bursts of air instead of traditional flaps and rudders to steer an aircraft.
This approach could make future planes lighter, simpler, and more efficient.
Aurora Flight Sciences, a Boeing subsidiary, is developing the X-65 under a DARPA initiative to collect real flight data on this technology.
The X-65 fuselage takes shape at Aurora’s Bridgeport, West Virginia facility. © Aurora Flight Sciences
In August 2025, DARPA and Aurora agreed to co-fund the aircraft’s completion and first flight. The CRANE program is now moving forward, with the fuselage expected to be finished in January 2026.
Leave A Comment