New Zealand’s Dawn Aerospace company announced on May 22 that the remotely piloted space plane MK-II Aurora is now available for purchase, with the first deliveries scheduled for 2027.
According to the company, it is the first time a vehicle that can go to space – designed to fly beyond the Karm line (100 km, or 328,000 feet, altitude) – has been offered for direct sale to customers.
Dawn Aerospace reports that aurora should become the fastest and higher altitude aircraft to take off from a conventional track, combining the extreme performance of rocket propulsion with the reuse and operational simplicity of traditional aviation. Which should allow high frequency and low cost access to high altitudes and space.
The aircraft introduces a business model similar to that of commercial airlines, where operators can buy it and provide services regardless of the manufacturer.
Also according to Dawn Aerospace, the suborbital space plane is designed for high frequency operations at traditional airports and spaces worldwide. Able to take off and land horizontally, quickly replenish and perform multiple flights a day. Aurora should allow local operators to access high altitudes and space from local clues on demand.
“For the first time, customers have the opportunity to have an aircraft capable of reaching the space limit,” said Stefan Powell, CEO of Dawn Aerospace. “Aurora is a transformative platform for governments, spaceports and new space aircraft operators access extreme altitudes and offer vital services and programs. It has been over a century since commercial airlines have started – now it’s time to launch the first space line.”
Dawn lists the following possibilities for innovations in key industries with Aurora aircraft:
– Life Sciences: Investigate Cell Biology, Regenerative Medicine and Spatial Health in Microgravity Conditions;
– Semiconductor Technology: Testing Chips and Next Generation Materials under extremes of radiation and thermal near the space;
– Defense applications: Validate communications and sensor loads at high altitude environments.
In November 2024, on the 57th Aurora flight, remotely piloted by Brazilian Iagho Amaral, the plane reached supersonic speeds, from Mach 1:12, and rose at 82,500 feet / 25.1 km. In doing so, it established a faster climb record of the track to over 20 km, breaking a mark of almost 50 years previously detained by the F-15 Streak Eagle modified.
With information from Dawn Aerospace
