The China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics has released photographs showing first guided flight test of the newest hypersonic aircraft, also called waverider.

Waverider is a hypersonic aircraft that have wedge-shaped fuselage that improves its supersonic lift-to-drag ratio by using the shock waves being generated by its own flight as a lifting surface.

According to the China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics, at 6:41 am on August 3, at the northwest test range was held successfully test-fired of new Star Air-2 waverider aircraft system.

The hypersonic aircraft was successfully completed active phase, jettison of aerodynamic payload fairing, autonomous and high maneuvering turning in 10 minutes’ flight.

The Aerospace Exploration Institute of the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation presented this waverider as the first hypersonic test aircraft in the aerodynamic layout of the wave body.

Waveriders are aircraft bodies shaped to skim along the top of the pressure wave created by their own supersonic flight — in essence, using the shock wave to increase the plane’s lift, or the upward force that keeps a plane in flight.

CAAA successfully test flew waverider hypersonic flight vehicle 星空/Sky star-2 in the northwest test range on Friday morning, the rocket completed active phase turning, stage/fairing separation, flight vehicle autonomous flight and high maneuvering turning in 10 minutes’ flight. pic.twitter.com/LhR3OrJuRy

— dafeng cao (@dafengcao) 3 August 2018