X-Bow Systems announced that it has completed the preliminary design review of its solid fuel hypersonic booster rocket engine.
The New Mexico-based defense tech company reported that completion of this phase marks the second major technical review for the program, demonstrating design maturity and reduced risk for critical technologies.
X-Bow is on track for the next major review of its hypersonic rocket motor, the critical design review, which typically indicates the end of architecture and system design.
“It’s exciting to see the character of our motor designs emerge during the [preliminary design review] process,” X-Bow co-founder Mark Kaufman said.
“The tenets of affordability, producibility, and compliant system level performance criteria are all converging toward critical design review and initial motor manufacture.”
Solid Rocket Motors for US Navy
Earlier this year, the company received contracts to build the solid rocket motor for the US Navy’s Mk 72 and Mk 104 missiles, aligning with the service’s Standard Missile program to integrate primary surface-to-air defense weapons into the American surface fleet.
In support of the agreements, X-Bow is leveraging its proprietary design solutions and manufacturing processes for the first and second stage propulsion of the navy’s standard missiles.
This builds on models developed in a previous effort with the US Air Force Research Laboratory seeking modern, low-cost solid rocket motor production techniques.
“X-Bow Systems is proud to be a partner in addressing the nation’s critical need for more solid rocket motors,” X-Bow CEO Jason Hundley said at the time.
“We have assembled a nationwide, experienced and talented team that is revolutionizing the approach to conventional manufacturing: enabling performance, flexibility, scaling, affordability, and reliability.”
