McDonnell Douglas’s Delta Clipper Experimental (DC-X) subscale single-stage-to-orbit prototype makes a 60-second first flight at the White Sands Missile Range, N.M. The 42-foot-tall vehicle takes off vertically, hovers at about 150 feet, moves laterally approximately 350 feet, and lands tail down.
The Air Force plans to add external weapons pylons on the B-1B bomber, both to increase the number of aircraft that can test hypersonic missiles and expand the Lancer’s loadout as USAF transitions to the B-21 bomber.