Lockheed Martin is purchasing the High Speed Wind Tunnel in Grand Prairie, Texas, one of the few wind tunnel facilities in the United States capable of generating test conditions at subsonic to supersonic speeds and at adjustable Mach numbers, announced the company. HSWT is “an aerospace engineering treasure, serving as a proving ground for hundreds of flight vehicles designed over the last six decades,” said Mike McWithey, HSWT manager, in the company’s March 25 release. For example, the A-7 Corsair II and space shuttle were tested at the facility, which has operated since 1958. Purchasing the previously leased facility will allow Lockheed Martin to upgrade it and enjoy flexibility in test scheduling, states the release. The company plans to modernize the tunnel’s test data system, utilities, and compressor system to significantly reduce operating costs. Government organizations like DARPA, the Missile Defense Agency, and NASA, along with industry, have routinely used the facility.
Anduril and General Atomics will develop their Collaborative Combat Aircraft for the Air Force, beating out Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman, the service announced on April 24. But any of the non-selected companies can compete to actually manufacture the eventual design, the Air Force said.