DARPA’s XRQ-73 SHEPARD Hybrid-Electric Flying Wing Prototype Takes Flight

Designed by Northrop Grumman and subsidiary Scaled Composites, the unmanned XRQ-73 features an ultra-quiet propulsion system powered by electricity from a gas turbine.  Taking off from Edwards Air Force Base in April 2026, the XRQ-73’s first flight was hailed by DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) as a “step forward in demonstrating the military utility […]