Hermeus, a venture-backed defense aviation company, said it has secured a $159 million contract modification with the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), also referred to as "Unit X."
This increases the total contract ceiling to $219 million to demonstrate high-Mach flight and high-speed payload release. Hermeus said the contract is one of the largest ever awarded by the DIU.
Building on earlier technical milestones, Hermeus is partnering with the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy to execute this expanded scope. The program aims to prove that uncrewed aircraft can reliably reach high-Mach speeds and release payloads in flight, establishing the technical foundation for future military use cases.
"This program is about moving high-Mach capability out of the lab and into an operationally relevant environment," said Hermeus CEO AJ Piplica in a statement. "By delivering flight-ready aircraft and demonstrating payload release at speed, we will prove this technology can create a decisive military advantage on a timeline that matters. Our focus is on providing the Air Force and Navy with the validated data they need to transition these platforms into the future force."
Under the new agreement, Hermeus will conduct a series of flight tests in 2026 and 2027. These tests will set out to prove the aircraft can maintain high speeds and expand its performance limits while successfully carrying and releasing payloads at high velocity. All flight data throughout the campaign will directly inform service experimentation and future acquisition decisions.
"As you look towards the future, and the military problems we're facing, the issues are generally around time and distance, and how do you get to these far-off places at a timeframe that matters," said DIU Military Deputy Major General Joe "Solo" Kunkel in a statement. "I care about the warfighting capability, providing advantage to our partners and us in the fight, and making sure that we can walk into every fight with swagger. If we can mass produce this, then it becomes a game-changing warfighting capability, where we use it as a weapon instead of a test platform, and I think we found a significant number of use cases where it can be used as a weapon."
By partnering directly with USAF and USN stakeholders, Hermeus is aligning flight tests with future mission needs and shortening the path from testing to deployment. The results will provide the services with the performance data and risk reduction necessary to see how high-Mach aircraft fit into the future fleet.
