A Multibillion-Dollar Air Force Test Overhaul Puts Flight Data in Focus

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., Nov. 13, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wall Street Investor News Commentary - The U.S. Air Force is lining up industry partners in advance to modernize the test infrastructure behind its next generation of defense systems. Arnold Engineering Development Complex (AEDC), in partnership with the Air Force Test Center, has established the AEDC Velocity Alliance, which it describes as an enterprise-level acquisition vehicle creating a pre-qualified, competitive ecosystem of industry partners capable of supporting a multibillion-dollar portfolio of infrastructure projects. On November 10, an operator of Mach 2+ jets said it had joined a team pursuing a role in that work. Companies mentioned in today’s commentary include: Starfighters Space, Inc. (NYSE American: FJET), Rocket Lab Corporation (Nasdaq: RKLB), Mercury Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: MRCY), Voyager Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: VOYG), and Curtiss-Wright Corporation (NYSE: CW).

The reasoning AEDC gives is simple. As defense systems become faster, more complex and more technologically advanced, the infrastructure used to test them has to keep pace, and the complex ties its modernization directly to next-generation warfighting systems, including hypersonic platforms, advanced sensors and technologies enabling the Long-Range Kill Chain.

What is new is how the Air Force intends to buy that work. Rather than waiting until an infrastructure requirement becomes urgent and then searching for contractors, the Alliance qualifies an industrial base ahead of time, with members meeting technical, cybersecurity and other requirements before they can compete for projects as needs arise. AEDC says the consortium can bring together traditional and non-traditional defense contractors, small businesses, nonprofit organizations and research institutions.

AEDC’s focus is its ground test capability. But the hardware moving through those programs, from processing electronics and propulsion to sensors and instrumentation, eventually has to prove itself in real flight, and the companies that build, instrument and fly that hardware are reporting heavy demand. Several of them posted record bookings or record backlog in their most recent quarters. And one Space Coast company is trying to put real-atmosphere flight data on the table alongside the Air Force’s ground facilities.

Starfighters Space Joins Exos Aerospace Team Pursuing U.S. Air Force AEDC Velocity Alliance Opportunities

• Exos Aerospace named Starfighters as its external teaming partner in a white paper submitted under the Alliance’s second onboarding opportunity.
• Exos has informed Starfighters that the Air Force Test Center evaluated the white paper as technically acceptable, and the Exos team is completing the remaining onboarding requirements.
• A typical 45-minute Starfighters mission can include up to approximately 10 minutes at Mach 2+.
• Two Wind Tunnel in the Sky™ flight articles have been received and assembled, with fit checks under way on the F-104’s existing pylon systems.
• A STARLAUNCH™ 1 captive-carry test flight is planned for December.
  
  

Starfighters Space, Inc. (NYSE American: FJET), the space company operating the world’s only commercial fleet of flight-ready Mach 2+ supersonic aircraft, announced on November 10 that it has joined a team led by Exos Aerospace Systems & Technologies, Inc. to pursue opportunities through the AEDC Velocity Alliance. Its F-104 aircraft can be configured to carry test articles and payloads through high-speed atmospheric flight conditions, supporting research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E) of aerospace and defense technologies. Participation in the onboarding process is not a contract award, task order or commitment of government funding, and the team is still completing its onboarding requirements.

“Adding Starfighters gives our team a high-speed airborne test capability that complements AEDC’s world-class ground-test facilities,” said John Quinn, Co-founder and CEO of Exos Aerospace. “Their operational F-104 fleet would let us offer the Air Force real-atmosphere flight data alongside the agency’s modernized infrastructure.”

“Starfighters brings a capability that is extremely difficult to replicate: an operational commercial F-104 fleet capable of sustained Mach 2+ flight in the real atmosphere,” said Tim Franta, CEO of Starfighters Space. “Exos selected Starfighters to bring high-speed airborne flight testing to its team. Successful onboarding would create another pathway for us to pursue government missions where our aircraft, infrastructure and flight-test experience can provide meaningful value.”

A track record in captive carry: Starfighters previously demonstrated its airborne testing capability through GE Aerospace’s Atmospheric Test of Launched Airbreathing System (ATLAS) program, a separate effort funded under Defense Production Act Title III and unrelated to AEDC, in which a Starfighters F-104 completed three successful supersonic captive-carry flights from Kennedy Space Center carrying an advanced propulsion test vehicle. The company is building on that experience through Wind Tunnel in the Sky™, its reusable airborne capability for sustained real-atmosphere testing of advanced aerospace, defense and hypersonic technologies.

Hardware on the hangar floor: In its November 3 update, the company said two Wind Tunnel in the Sky™ flight articles have been received and assembled and that it is performing fit checks to connect them to the existing pylon systems on the F-104. An inert flight article for the suborbital version of STARLAUNCH™, its air-launch program, has been designed and is being fabricated, and the planned December captive-carry flight would run between its base at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center and the FAA-licensed Cecil Spaceport in Jacksonville. The company has said that flight may also provide an opportunity to fly Wind Tunnel in the Sky™ hardware under the other wing on a customer-funded rideshare mission, and that beginning with the December test it is working toward a regular cadence of flight operations to facilitate rideshare opportunities for other revenue-producing customers.

A busy month at the Cape: On November 6, Starfighters hosted President Donald J. Trump, who delivered an address on U.S. aerospace leadership from the company’s hangar at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, with its F-104 jets on display along with new hardware for its Wind Tunnel in the Sky™ flight research system. In a Yahoo Finance interview posted to the company’s YouTube channel on November 12, Franta discussed the F-104 fleet, the development of the STARLAUNCH™ air-launch program, planned flight-testing milestones and the evolving commercial space economy. The interview is also available on the Starfighters investor profile page, and Franta is scheduled to host a live investor briefing by webcast on Friday, November 20, at 4:00 p.m. ET.

CONTINUED... Read this and more news for Starfighters Space, Inc. (NYSE American: FJET) at: wsi.news

In other industry developments and happenings in the market this week include:

Rocket Lab Corporation (Nasdaq: RKLB)

Rocket Lab reported record third quarter 2026 revenue of $268 million, a 73% increase year-on-year, and a record backlog of approximately $3.6 billion, up 52% since the end of the second quarter. The company signed approximately $1 billion in new launch contracts across Electron, HASTE and Neutron, bringing its total launch backlog to a record 117 launches, and guided fourth quarter revenue to $270 million to $290 million. First launch of its reusable Neutron medium-lift rocket is now targeted for no earlier than 2027.

“Our end-to-end space strategy is delivering exactly as designed: the world’s most critical and ambitious missions increasingly rely on Rocket Lab for launch, spacecraft, and components, sometimes all on a single mission, and every part of our business is growing as a result,” said founder and CEO Sir Peter Beck.

Mercury Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: MRCY)

Mercury, which describes itself as a global leader in aerospace and defense electronics with a portfolio spanning silicon to systems and radio frequency front ends to effectors, reported record first quarter fiscal 2027 bookings of $370 million, up 48.0% year-over-year, for a book-to-bill of 1.46. Backlog is approaching $2.1 billion, up 44.7%, and revenue rose 12.4% to approximately $253 million, with GAAP net income of $13 million and record first quarter adjusted EBITDA of $56 million.

“Our first quarter results reflect robust organic growth and margins that are in-line with our target profile. Based on this solid execution, we are raising our outlook for fiscal year 2027,” said Bill Ballhaus, Mercury’s Chairman and CEO.

Voyager Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: VOYG)

Voyager, a defense technology and space solutions company whose work runs from propulsion and energetics to advanced electronics and space exploration, reported record third quarter 2026 revenue of $89 million, up 124% year-over-year, record bookings of $116 million, up 135%, and record backlog of $742 million, including $347 million added through the Astrobotic acquisition. The company raised its full-year 2026 revenue guidance to $285 million to $305 million, announced a strategic partnership with Anduril to deliver advanced defense technologies, and completed Griffin-1 acceptance testing ahead of a planned late-2026 launch.

“Voyager has emerged as a differentiated technology platform at the convergence of defense, national security and space, investing ahead of demand to scale the capabilities and capacity our customers need,” said Dylan Taylor, Chairman and CEO of Voyager Technologies.

Curtiss-Wright Corporation (NYSE: CW)

Curtiss-Wright, which calls itself a global leader in flight test instrumentation solutions and says reliable capture of flight test data is what spares programs costly extra flights or lost months of program data, reported third quarter 2026 sales of $953 million, up 10%, new orders of $1.1 billion, up 15%, and backlog of $4.6 billion, up 12% year-to-date. The company raised its full-year 2026 adjusted outlook, now calling for sales growth of 8% to 10% and diluted EPS of $15.40 to $15.60.

“Orders increased 15% year-over-year, primarily driven by continued strong demand in defense electronics and growth across all of our A&D markets, reinforcing our confidence in our ability to deliver consistent and durable future growth,” said Lynn M. Bamford, Chair and CEO of Curtiss-Wright Corporation.

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Cautionary Note Regarding Development-Stage Programs and Government Opportunities. Wind Tunnel in the Sky™ and STARLAUNCH™ are programs in development. The Company reports that two Wind Tunnel in the Sky™ flight articles have been received and assembled and are undergoing fit checks with the F-104 pylon systems; they have not yet flown a customer mission. The STARLAUNCH™ 1 captive-carry flight planned for December is a planned activity that may not occur on schedule or at all, a captive-carry flight is not a launch, and the Company’s air-launch operations remain subject to regulatory approvals, including a launch license. Participation by Exos Aerospace and the Company in the AEDC Velocity Alliance onboarding process does not constitute a contract award, task order or commitment of government funding, and there can be no assurance that Exos Aerospace will complete onboarding, that the team will receive any future project award, or that the Company will generate revenue from the Velocity Alliance. References to AEDC, the Air Force Test Center and the U.S. Air Force are for identification only and do not imply endorsement by the Department of the Air Force or the Department of Defense. Statements regarding the Company’s programs, planned activities and the November 6, 2026 address at its hangar are the Company’s own, as stated in its news releases, and nothing in this article represents a political endorsement by the publisher or implies any government contract with or endorsement of the Company. The Yahoo Finance interview referenced in this article was published by the Company on its YouTube channel; the Company discloses that it participated in Yahoo Finance Invest 2026 as a paid presenting sponsor. Information regarding other companies is as reported by those companies. Readers should review the risk factors in the Company’s most recent Form 10-K and other filings with the SEC at www.sec.gov.

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