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Hermeus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Not to be confused with Hermes or Hermus.
Hermeus
Company typePrivate
IndustryAerospace
Founded2018
FounderAJ Piplica (CEO)
Skyler Shuford (COO)
Glenn Case (CTO)
Mike Smayda (CPO)
HeadquartersAtlanta, Georgia
Number of locations
4
Websitehermeus.com

Hermeus Corporation is an American startup company designing a hypersonic airliner.

History

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The company was founded in 2018[1] with initial funding led by Khosla Ventures.[2]

In 2021, Hermeus secured $60 million in funding from the U.S. Air Force and venture capital to support the Quarterhorse flight test program.[3]

In March 2022, the company raised a $100 million series B investment round led by Sam Altman.[4] Other investors included Founders Fund, In-Q-Tel, and existing investors Khosla Ventures, Canaan Partners, and Bling Capital.

Products

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The Quarterhorse aircraft under development is planned to reach Mach 5 with a range of 4,600 miles (7,400 km).[5] The company claims to have designed, built, and successfully tested a Mach 5 engine prototype.[6] In August 2020, Hermeus received a $1.5 million contract from the United States Air Force to develop their proposed aircraft and function as a possible Air Force One.[7]

They are building the supersonic Quarterhorse Mk 2 with an advanced engine based on the Pratt & Whitney F100. Quarterhorse Mk 2 is expected to hit speeds greater than Mach 2.5.

Design

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The engine adds a precooler to a standard Pratt & Whitney F100[clarification needed]. The precooler lowers the temperature of incoming air, preventing the melting of engine parts and allowing the engine to be more efficient.[8]

The Chimera engine is a turbine-based combined cycle machine that combines a pre-cooled turbine with a ramjet. It was successfully tested in November 2022.[9][10] It is planned to power the Quarterhorse Mk 3, which will reach speeds close to Mach 1. Upon reaching sufficient speed, Chimera routes incoming air around the turbojet and the ramjet takes over at around Mach 3.[11][9][12]

Development

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Quarterhorse

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The Quarterhorse development program[12][13] has four stages:[14]

  • MK 0: A non-flying prototype to validate all major aircraft subsystems.
  • Mk 1: The first flyable version.
  • Mk 2: Supersonic speeds in 2025.
  • Mk 3: Incorporates Chimera II propulsion system, targeting faster than Mach 3.3.

Darkhorse

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Darkhorse is an uncrewed hypersonic military jet intended for mass production.

Halcyon

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Halcyon is a planned hypersonic passenger jet.[12]

Testing

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In August 2024, Hermeus completed low-speed taxi tests,[15][16] and in May 2025 the Quarterhorse Mk 1 flew a successful flight test at Edwards AFB. At the same time it was reported that the Mk2 was already well into its manufacturing process.[17]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Hermeus wins seed funding for hypersonic aircraft, with former Blue Origin president as adviser". GeekWire. 13 May 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  2. ^ Berger, Eric (13 May 2019). "Hermeus announces plan to build the fastest aircraft in the world". Ars Technica. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  3. ^ Hermeus begins testing the Quarterhorse Mk 0 prototype. Journal Military. n.d. Retrieved October 6, 2024 – via YouTube.
  4. ^ Sheetz, Michael (2022-03-10). "Hypersonic aircraft start-up Hermeus raises $100 million to finish prototype, build out fleet". CNBC. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  5. ^ "Hermeus | Hypersonic Aircraft Startup | Atlanta". Hermeus. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  6. ^ "Aug 06, 2020". Hermeus. August 6, 2020. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  7. ^ Niles, Russ (6 September 2020). "Air Force Eying Supersonic Air Force One". AVweb. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  8. ^ Szondy, David (2024-05-16). "Video: Hermeus hypersonic aircraft gathers speed with precooler test". NEW ATLAS. Archived from the original on 2024-05-17. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  9. ^ a b "PART TURBINE, PART RAMJET". Hermeus. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  10. ^ "Hermeus Completes Hypersonic Milestone With Engine Tests". www.hermeus.com. November 17, 2022.
  11. ^ Blain, Loz (2023-01-24). "Turbojet to hypersonic ramjet: Hybrid Chimera engine shows its range". NEW ATLAS. Archived from the original on 2024-09-17. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  12. ^ a b c Wang, Brian (2024-08-08). "Precooled F-100 Engine Combined with Ramjet for Hypersonic Drone and Jets". next BIG future. Retrieved 2024-08-24.
  13. ^ "Quarterhorse |High-Speed Flight Test Aircraft". Hermeus.com. n.d. Retrieved October 6, 2024.
  14. ^ "QUARTERHORSE". Hermeus. Retrieved 2025-01-02.
  15. ^ "Hermeus Marks Progress With Quarterhorse Taxi Testing". aviationweek.com/. August 23, 2024.
  16. ^ Hermeus Completes Testing of Quarterhorse Mk 0 Vehicle. Hermeus. n.d. Retrieved October 6, 2024 – via YouTube.
  17. ^ https://avgeekery.com/quarterhorse-mk-1-test-flight/
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