The Falcon HTV-2 is ready for flight, at least in this mock-up.

When it comes to speed, humans are pretty pathetic.  Even the world’s fastest man pales in comparison to a cheetah, a computer, or a standard automobile.  Still, we’re finding ways to improve our speed, though in the case of humans that means building bigger, better, and faster vehicles.  Enter the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA.  DARPA, the skunkworks for the US Department of Defense, is known for its mad creations (The Crusher driverless vehicle, super sunglasses, the BigDog robot), but this one is even madder than most:  DARPA is test-flying an aircraft capable of flying 20 times the speed of sound.

The aircraft is dubbed the Falcon, or Falcon Hypersonic Technology Vehicle 2 (Falcon HTV-2).  It’s a global strike bomber developed as part of a project called Prompt Global Strike, and it is capable of flying 13,000 miles an hour to deliver a payload of bombs anywhere in the world using bleeding-edge technology.  We’re talking New York to Los Angeles flights in 12 minutes!  Assuming it works, of course.  The first Falcon was lost during testing; the second Falcon will be launched from a Minotaur 4 rocket at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California sometime today.

“DARPA looks forward to conquering more unknowns about long-duration hypersonic missions.  We need to increase our technical knowledge to support future hypersonic technology development,” said Dave Neyland, director of DARPA’s Tactical Technology Office.  “We gained valuable data from the first flight, made some adjustments based on the findings of an engineering review board to improve this second flight, and now we’re ready to put all of that to the test.”

Tags: Falcon Hypersonic Technology Vehicle 2, Falcon, 20 times the speed of sound, mach 20, Minotaur 4 rocket, Vandenberg Air Force Base, DARPA, Dave Neyland, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Department of Defense, Prompt Global Strike, new technology, new airplanes, 13000 miles-an-hour plane, research, airplanes, HTV-2

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