14-X

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14-X
14-XW.jpg
14-XW variant
TypeHypersonic glide vehicle
Short-range ballistic missile
Place of originBrazil
Service history
In service2021-present[1][2]
Used byBrazilian Air Force
Production history
DesignerInstitute for Advanced Studies
Manufacturer
See list
No. builtUnknown
Variants4
Specifications
Mass2,970 kg (6,550 lb)
Length14.6 m (47 ft 11 in)
Diameter0.83 m (2 ft 9 in)
WarheadUnknown
Propellant
Operational
range
14-XS: 200 km (120 mi)
Flight altitude
  • 160 km (520,000 ft) maximum altitude with ballistic re-entry
  • 30.4 km (100,000 ft) service ceiling after re-entry
Maximum speed
  • 12,000 km/h (7,500 mph)
Mach 10

The 14-X is a Brazilian hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV), it can be also classified as an short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) with an test apogee of 160 km (520,000 ft), range of 200 km (120 mi) and rocket's relative low cost and ease of configuration.[1] 14-X was developed by the Aerothermodynamics and Hypersonics Laboratory Henry T. Nagamatsu of the Institute for Advanced Studies (IEAv) and the Brazilian Air Force as part of the PropHiper (Portuguese: Projeto de Propulsão Hipersônica 14-X).[3][4]

Equipped with three liquid hydrogen powered scramjet engines,[4] launched by a VSB-30 rocket, flying at an altitude of about 100,000 ft[5] and a maximum speed of Mach 10.[5] The name is a reference to the 14-bis, of the Brazilian inventor and aviation pioneer Alberto Santos-Dumont.[6] The Brazilian Air Force conducted the first qualification test flight of 14-X on 14 December 2021 from the Alcântara Space Center.[1][7][8][9]

Development[]

Brazil conducts studies in the field of aspirated hypersonics since 1990s,[3] but an development plan was conceived only in 2007, through the PropHiper project, made official by the Air Force in 2008,[10] when the engineer-captain of the Brazilian Air Force, Tiago Cavalcanti Rolim, started a master's degree at the Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica (ITA) and was approved with a thesis on the waverider configuration.[6] The development of the project started with an experimental model by the Institute for Advanced Studies in the same year.[6] Testing of the hypersonic engine started in October 2009.[4]

Deployment[]

On 2 December 2021, the Air Force's Department of Aerospace Science and Technology (DCTA), announced the beginning of Cruzeiro Operation with purpose to conduct the first flight of the 14-X,[11] that was carried out from the Alcântara Space Center in Alcântara, Maranhão. 14-X was monitored by the tracking station of the Barreira do Inferno Launch Center in Rio Grande do Norte state with route and target towards the Atlantic ocean,[10] the flight date was kept confidential.[11]

On 14 December 2021, the Brazilian Air Force announced the first successful test flight of 14-XS that was conducted from Alcântara, reaching at Mach 6, more than 7,000 km/h (4,300 mph), and altitude of 100,000 ft. The vehicle also was successful in the planned trajectory and ballistic re-entry with an apogee of 160 km (520,000 ft). The test range of 14-XS was about 200 km (120 mi).[1][12]

Project details[]

See also: VSB-30
An video showing a VSB-30 launch in Esrange, Sweden as part of TEXUS 49 in 2011.

The 14-X use as launcher the VSB-30 (Portuguese: Veículo de Sondagem Booster – 30), a sub-orbital two-stage solid fuel sounding rocket developed in early 2000s by Brazil's Institute of Aeronautics and Space (IAE).[13]

Variants[]

The 14-X was developed in four variants with different purposes:[1]

  • 14-XS: ballistic ascending flight with supersonic combustion;
  • 14-XSP: ballistic ascending flight with aspirated hypersonic propulsion;
  • 14-XW: gliding, without propulsion, of a controllable and maneuverable hypersonic vehicle with guidance, navigation and control systems during stratospheric flight;
  • 14-XWP: autonomous flight of a controllable and maneuverable vehicle with active aspirated hypersonic propulsion.

Purpose[]

The technology is considered by Brazil as one of the most efficient means of accessing space in the near future, and could be used to place satellites in orbit and make suborbital flights.[6][4] It can also be used in other areas such as the development of intercontinental ballistic missiles with a more potent rocket or in civil aviation.[4]

Operation history[]

A list with conducted operations of the 14-X:

Date Vehicle Mission Results Ref
14 December 2021 14-X (XS VSB-30 V32) Qualification (Cruzeiro Operation) Success [1]

Specifications[]

List of specifications for 14-X without the VSB-30.

Data from Brazilian Air Force[3] Gizmodo[5] DefesaBR[4]

General characteristics

  • Length: 2.0 m (6 ft 7 in)
  • Wingspan: 0.83 m (2 ft 9 in)
  • Empty weight: 250 kg (551 lb)
  • Max takeoff weight: 400 kg (882 lb)
  • Powerplant: 3 × Scramjet

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 12,000 km/h (7,500 mph, 6,500 kn)
  • Maximum speed: Mach 10
  • Service ceiling: 30,480 m (100,000 ft)

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f "FAB realiza primeiro teste de voo do motor aeronáutico hipersônico 14-X". Brazilian Air Force. 16 December 2021.
  2. ^ "Conheça o Projeto 14-X, de tecnologia hipersônica, desenvolvido pela FAB". CNN Brazil (in Portuguese). 9 January 2022.
  3. ^ a b c "Propulsão Hipersônica: Projeto 14-X". Brazilian Air Force (in Portuguese). 11 December 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "O 14-X HIPERSÔNICO UM FUTURO PARA A FAB". DEFESABR (in Portuguese). 5 March 2007. Archived from the original on 5 March 2007.
  5. ^ a b c "Brasil prepara 14-X, uma nave hipersônica, para voar em 2013". Gizmodo (in Portuguese). 19 April 2011.
  6. ^ a b c d "Do 14-bis ao 14-X". ISTOÉ (in Portuguese). 28 March 2013.
  7. ^ "O CLA e Sua Agenda de Lançamentos Até 2022". Brazilian Space. 21 June 2019.
  8. ^ "Concluída mais uma etapa do projeto de desenvolvimento de um veículo hipersônico". Brazilian Air Force (in Portuguese). 21 February 2019.
  9. ^ "Brasil pondrá a prueba el 14-X en la Operación Cruzeiro". Infodefensa.com (in Spanish). 3 March 2020.
  10. ^ a b "Projeto 14-X – O Brasil na era da Propulsão Hipersônica". Defesa Aerea e Naval (in Portuguese). 11 December 2021.
  11. ^ a b "DCTA envia ao CLA preparativos da Operação Cruzeiro". Brazilian Air Force (in Portuguese). 2 December 2021.
  12. ^ "FAB realiza primeiro teste de voo do motor aeronáutico hipersônico 14-X". Revista Tecnologia e Defesa (in Portuguese). 16 December 2021.
  13. ^ "Veículo suborbital VSB-30 terá modelo modernizado". Defesa Net. 31 March 2017.

External links[]

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