CAES announced that its autonomous flight termination unit (AFTU) performed flawlessly on a recent flight of a hypersonic test platform.
The flight test was part of a program to validate payload performance in a very challenging, operationally-relevant hypersonic environment. This live flight success signifies a major milestone in product development.
“We are excited to expand upon the CAES product portfolio to include AFTUs for hypersonic vehicles,” said CAES Chief Operating Officer Dr. David Young. “The recent flight test continues to reaffirm our confidence in the AFTU product line by successfully demonstrating one of the CAES-developed and manufactured AFTU prototypes. Hypersonic development is a critical area, and we look forward to continuing to develop products that meet the needs of today’s challenging environment.”
The CAES AFTU is a fully configurable termination unit that employs the latest software, technologies and manufacturing processes to provide a high performance, long-life product. It has extremely low size, weight and power and is capable of handling the harshest operational environments. The AFTU is an evolution of the CAES flight termination product family. Along with the company’s legacy products, the unit further establishes CAES as a key provider of innovative flight safety technology.