Aurora Flight Sciences has signed a contract with the U.S. Army's Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command (SMDC/ARSTRAT) for the continued development of the Orion HALL ultra-long endurance unmanned air system. Orion HALL's primary mission is to serve as the demonstration testbed for an advanced hydrogen propulsion system. Aurora is currently testing a Boeing hydrogen engine in its ultra high altitude test facility in Manassas, Virginia.
With such an engine, the Orion HALL Objective System would be able to carry payloads of up to 400 pounds to altitudes of up to 65,000 feet for endurances over 100 hours.
A conventionally powered version of Orion HALL is also under study. This version could have endurances approaching two weeks at altitudes of around 20,000 feet.
