It's called the Skunk Works..A mysterious, huge hangar in Palmdale, Calif..I once posed outside the building next to the big sign for a photo — watched every step of the way by armed guards.. Skunk WorksSkunk Works .And there is a good reason for that. Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works has created some of the most advanced, secret aircraft in the world..Everything from the F-104 Starfighter, to the SR-71 Blackbird, the F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter and beyond..In fact, it's said the technology inside that secret building is 50 years ahead of anything we have today..That said, Skunk Works is now taking on a new challenge..Lockheed Martin invested some US$100 million in new technologies, collectively known internally as “Project Carrera,” named for the Porsche sports car.. Porche CarreraPorche Carrera .Why the Porsche?.According to report in Air & Space Forces magazine, the leading aerospace company will soon begin a campaign of flight tests of its “Speed Racer” uncrewed air vehicle, aiming for an expendable, modular, multipurpose vehicle that will cooperate with the F-35 and cost well below $2 million a copy, the director of the company’s Skunk Works division, John Clark, said..In other words, it is hoping for a "speedy program.".Speaking from Skunk Works’ Palmdale, Calif., headquarters on a call with defence reporters, Clark said flight testing will begin “in the near future” — tests in which the Speed Racer will be captive-carried at first; then, in later tests, released from an unnamed mother ship..Clark anticipated multiple flight tests before the end of 2022.. Skunk Works logoSkunk Works logo .He emphasized none of the flights will be a one-off “stunt,” but instead one in a series of tests that will each demonstrate aspects of the concept, to be followed not by similar-level flights, but by leaps in capability, Air & Space Forces reported..“It will be a … systematic build-up” of capabilities demonstrated on each test, he said..The $100 million invested in various enabling technologies, such as artificial intelligence, autonomy, low-cost manufacturing, and other disciplines form the foundation for a production program..Clark said the goal is a vehicle costing “considerably less” than $2 million a copy, but going beyond the Modular Air-Launched Decoy system in that it could serve both as an extension of the F-35’s sensors — performing sensing, electronic warfare, or other missions — as well as a decoy..Lockheed Martin paid particular attention to human interaction with collaborative vehicles, building a series of programs that account for the variables in how humans interact with such machines, Clark reported..The concept also builds on the Rapid Dragon experiments in which the Air Force dropped a pallet of autonomous air vehicles out of the back end of a C-130 or similar aircraft, creating an airborne network of sensors and shooters, Clark said..In later tests of Speed Racer, multiple vehicles could fly at once. Clark mentioned a four-ship collaborative formation as one concept being studied..To keep costs down — not only acquisition costs but operations and sustainment — the Speed Racer vehicles are not meant to be recovered, but if the modular nose is carrying a particularly valuable sensor, it could be retrieved with a parachute system, Clark said, “so, ‘optionally recoverable.’”.The aim is to populate the “long-range kill web,” Clark said..Anticipated future warfare is expected to be much more spread out geographically and between domains, necessitating a wider scope of communications between combat nodes and platforms, National Interest reported..Also, the threat environment is changing rapidly to include new technologies and attack capacities..Air defences detect at longer ranges, are better networked, and operate with much greater speed, enemy weapons are more autonomous and precise, and dis-aggregated attacks spread the threat envelope much wider than has ever been the case..Thus, the need for drones of all shapes and sizes for both tactical and survivability purposes..He reiterated Lockheed Martin’s analysis concludes a vehicle that simply flies alongside or near an F-35— sometimes called a “loyal wingman” — doesn’t provide much operational value and is not “cheap,” he said..Flying well ahead of or away from the F-35 and performing related autonomous missions is more effective, he said..It also allows the expendable craft to carry lower-cost sensors and meet the desired price point. Some Speed Racer-type vehicles could undertake roles such as electronic warfare as part of the collaborative formation, he said..Lockheed Martin has released promotional videos showing Speed Racer as a squat vehicle with pop-out wings and conformal air intakes, Air & Space Forces reported..Aviation Week was the first to report Speed Racer would be powered by an engine from Technical Directions Inc. (TDI). Since 2019, TDI has been a wholly-owned subsidiary of drone-maker Kratos..TDI’s product portfolio consists of four turbojets with diameters between 4.5 - 8.5 in., and power ratings between 30-200-lb. thrust..Meanwhile, Lockheed Martin’s current program, the SR-72, also known as the “Son of Blackbird,” is one of aerospace’s most hotly anticipated programs, 19FortyFive.com reported..A fictional craft, allegedly similar to the SR-72, named the DarkStar, appeared in Top Gun:Maverick..Early in the film, which has become 2022’s highest grossing, Tom Cruise’s character pilots the Darkstar in an attempt to hit Mach 10 speeds..The scene was created with direct assistance from the Skunk Works' lab – the same team responsible for the SR-72.. F-117 NighthawkF-117 Nighthawk
