X-65 Active Flow Control Demonstrator
Transforming the Future of Aircraft Design
Aurora Flight Sciences is designing and building the X-65 aircraft for DARPA’s Control of Revolutionary Aircraft with Novel Effectors (CRANE) program. The program aims to demonstrate the benefits of active flow control at tactically relevant scale and flight conditions.
Active flow control (AFC) uses pressurized air for flight control, potentially replacing the traditional flaps and rudders used to maneuver most aircraft today. AFC is expected to deliver benefits in aerodynamics, weight, and mechanical complexity; and may transform the future of aircraft design.
Design
X-65 is purpose-designed to demonstrate AFC. The triangular wing design enables testing across multiple wing sweeps and is modular with replaceable outboard wings and swappable AFC effectors to allow for future testing of additional AFC designs.
The design phases of the program included conceptualization, preliminary and detailed design, wind tunnel testing, AFC system testing, and more.
Manufacturing
Aurora Flight Sciences is manufacturing X-65 across its facilities in West Virginia, Mississippi, and Virginia.
The fuselage was completed in West Virginia in January 2026 and then delivered to Aurora’s headquarters in Manassas, Virginia for system integration and ground testing.
The aircraft is expected to be ready for flight testing in 2027.
Specifications
To minimize risk and maximize learnings, X-65 has both traditional actuators and active flow control. During testing, moving surfaces can be selectively locked down, using AFC effectors instead.
