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The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has officially revealed its newest X-plane, the XRQ-73, as part of the Series Hybrid Electric Propulsion AiRcraft Demonstration program.
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SHEPARD is an “X-prime” program, leveraging the series hybrid-electric architecture and some of the component technologies from the earlier Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL)/IARPA Great Horned Owl (GHO) project.
The XRQ-73 aircraft will be a Group 3 UAS, weighing approximately 566 kilograms (1,250 pounds), with the first flight of the XRQ-73 expected by the end of 2024.
Steve Komadina, Series Hybrid Electric Propulsion AiRcraft Demonstration (SHEPARD) program manager said, “The idea behind a DARPA X-prime program is to take emerging technologies and burn down system-level integration risks to quickly mature a new missionised long-endurance aircraft design that can be fielded quickly.”
The DARPA team includes members from the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), the Office of Naval Research (ONR), and personnel from across the United States Armed Forces.
The prime contractor for SHEPARD is Northrop Grumman Corporation’s Aeronautics Systems sector in Redondo Beach, California. Scaled Composites, LLC is a major supplier, along with Cornerstone Research Group, Brayton Energy, PC Krause and Associates, and EaglePicher Technologies.
“The SHEPARD program is maturing a specific propulsion architecture and power class as an exemplar of potential benefits for the Department of Defense,” Komadina said.
DARPA’s SHEPARD program is an existing option to the AFRL GHO contract.
DARPA’s SHEPARD X-Prime program will leverage the GHO hybrid electric architecture and some of its component technologies and quickly mature a new mission-focused aircraft design that can be fielded with the objective of first flight in 20 months.
