Pluto Aerospace Conducts Second Successful Hypersonic Flight Test

Pluto Aerospace has completed the second successful flight with paid passengers on its Dash prototype, a low-cost hypersonic testbed. The company highlights its mission to make high-speed flight research more accessible to small businesses and startups.

The Dash testbed allows for rapid, iterative hypersonic testing without the overhead or wait times of larger programs, offering flexibility for smaller companies that need an accelerated timeline for testing and development.

“Right now, getting anything to fly involves a huge budget and long wait times small businesses simply don’t have the runway for,” said Christopher Nilsen, founder of Pluto Aerospace and associate propulsion Dbt engineer in Purdue University’s College of Engineering.

Nilsen continued, “I hear it from people all the time: ‘We’d love to prove our tech but we can’t afford to wait three or four years to get on a flight.’ So, we know it’s the right answer because it doesn’t exist anywhere else. We’re proud to be that bridge.”

One of the companies taking advantage of the accelerated timeline is American Energy Technologies Co., a Chicago-based woman-owned small business focusing on functional coatings, novel materials, and portable energy systems.

The idea for a reusable hypersonic testbed was born while Nilsen attended Purdue, and the university has remained a pillar of support for the startup. A Purdue Strategic Ventures portfolio company, Pluto Aerospace has also received an additional $800,000 investment from a Purdue alumnus.

Pluto Aerospace is taking reservations for later this year. As Nilsen puts it, “You don’t have to wait anymore. You can be flying by the end of the year.”