Mission Success: Rocket Lab Launches 2nd Hypersonic Test Mission in Three Months for Defense Innovation Unit
Rocket Lab's HASTE rocket achieved 100% success in deploying DART AE, advancing reusable hypersonic technology for the US Department of War and its allies.
- On Feb. 27, 2026, Rocket Lab Corporation launched HASTE rocket 'That's Not A Knife' from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2, marking its second DIU hypersonic test in three months and seventh overall.
- HASTE, an acronym for hypersonic accelerator suborbital test electron, functions as a suborbital testbed and has rapidly become a commercial hypersonic test platform in under two years.
- The mission deployed DART AE, a scramjet-powered aircraft by Hypersonix, into a suborbital hypersonic flight environment at several times the speed of sound, with Matt Hill calling it a major milestone.
- Rocket Lab reports 100% mission success across all HASTE launches, supporting hypersonic testing and national security, as the company celebrates its third launch of the year.
- Rocket Lab's wider portfolio shows more than 1,700 missions backing test services, while Hypersonix said the flight moves it closer to reusable hypersonic capabilities for allies.
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Mission Success: Rocket Lab Launches 2nd Hypersonic Test Mission in Three Months for Defense Innovation Unit
LONG BEACH, Calif., Feb. 27, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Rocket Lab Corporation (Nasdaq: RKLB) (“Rocket Lab” or “the Company”), a global leader in launch services and space systems, today successfully launched its latest hypersonic test mission on its HASTE rocket…
Mission Success: Rocket Lab Launches 2nd Hypersonic Test Mission in Three Months for Defense Innovation Unit - Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB)
LONG BEACH, Calif., Feb. 27, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Rocket Lab Corporation (NASDAQ:RKLB) ("Rocket Lab" or "the Company"), a global leader in launch services and space systems, today successfully launched its latest
Rocket Lab Conduct Debut Flight of DART Hypersonic Aircraft
Today, February 28, Rocket Lab conducted the seventh launch of HASTE, its rocket designed for advanced hypersonic test flights. The mission, named That’s Not A Knife, lifted off from Launch Complex 2 at Mid-Atlantic Spaceport on Wallops Island, Virginia, carrying the DART AE aircraft demonstrator. LIFTOFF! Launch of our latest hypersonic test mission from Virginia, the "That's Not A Knife" mission for @DIU_x and @Hypersonix_AU pic.twitter.com/PV…
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