Aurora Flight Sciences plans ground tests and flight demonstrations to prove the efficiency improvements promised by MIT’s unconventional “double-bubble” D8 twin-aisle short-/medium-range airliner concept.

While everything still hinges on the precooler technology of Reaction Engines’ Synergetic Air-Breathing Rocket Engine (SABRE), the Air Force Research Laboratory sees huge potential for the propulsion concept

AeroVironment developed its Blackwing small unmanned aircraft system to provide intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance for submerged submarines. Now the company has demonstrated how its UAS can act as a digital communications relay, enabling the sub to control a swarm of unmanned underwater vehicles.

Over the past 60 years, NASA has been involved in several X-plane programs that have demonstrated technologies that changed the way aircraft are designed. We take a look at NASA’s X-planes and their contributions.

Double-bubble D8, Blended Wing Body, Transonic Truss-Braced Wing, Hybrid Wing Body and a small-airliner-size BWB – the configurations NASA is considering for planned ultra-efficient subsonic transport demonstrators.

As NASA widens its search for ultra-efficient X-plane demonstrators, little-known design house Dzyne Technologies unveils its proposal for a blended wing-body business jet and small airliner.

Reaction Engines is firming up plans to build a fighter engine-size ground demonstrator of its reusable hypersonic propulsion system.

United Launch Alliance is taking the first steps along an alternate path involving recovery of only the first-stage engines.