STARLAUNCH 1 demonstrator enters critical design review after wind tunnel validation

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Starfighters Space Inc. in Cape Canaveral, Fla., announced it is moving forward to a Critical Design Review (CDR) for its STARLAUNCH 1 rocket demonstrator following successful wind tunnel testing, with support from GE Aerospace in Cincinnati.

The CDR is intended to confirm design maturity and support the program’s transition into its next phase of build and test planning. The review, expected within the next two weeks, will examine design documentation and analysis for the vehicle and its interfaces with the carrier aircraft, with a focus on configuration control, manufacturability, and test readiness.

The milestone follows recently completed subsonic and supersonic wind tunnel testing that the company said demonstrated clean separation behavior across tested flight conditions and correlated with its computational models. Starfighters has also initiated procurement of an instrumented demonstrator vehicle that will be flown underwing to further evaluate separation dynamics in flight.

Related: Starfighters completes wind tunnel testing for STARLAUNCH 1 air-launched rocket

Using a combination of computational fluid dynamics analysis and experimental wind tunnel testing, the company assessed separation behavior at Mach 0.85 and Mach 1.3. Across all test conditions, the company reported clean separation with no adverse aerodynamic interactions observed.

CDR goals

In aerospace development, a CDR is a formal program milestone that provides an integrated review of a system’s detailed design before proceeding into fabrication, integration, and formal testing. The process typically evaluates the design baseline, system interfaces, verification plans, and technical risks, and provides management with a basis to authorize the next phase of program execution.

GE Aerospace has supported Starfighters’ STARLAUNCH development through prior engineering work and flight test activities. The company said GE Aerospace participation in the upcoming review is intended to strengthen program discipline and accelerate risk reduction.

"We execute STARLAUNCH as a series of practical, documented steps to space," said Tim Franta, Director and vice president of development at Starfighters. "A critical design review is where we confirm that the design is ready for the next phase. Our team is dedicated and focused on the mission, and we are staying disciplined as we progress STARLAUNCH 1."

STARLAUNCH 1 is being developed as a suborbital vehicle intended to support short-duration microgravity missions and to serve as a pathfinder for future air-launched space concepts. The company said its validated separation work also supports broader aerospace testing services, including programs requiring clean separation for advanced and hypersonic vehicle testing.