Ravn X Autonomous Launch System
Aevum
Aevum's autonomous drone carrier aircraft (Ravn X) that air-launches a two-stage orbital rocket — targeting up to 100 kg to SSO with fully autonomous end-to-end operations.
Key figurescomparable across the catalogue
- Payload capacity
- 100 kg
- Largest dimension
- 24,400 mm
Normalised to common units so this product can be compared with others in its category. The supplier's own wording is below.
As published by the supplier
- Carrier vehicle
- Ravn X — autonomous jet-powered UAS
- Launch method
- Air-launch from Ravn X aircraft
- Payload to SSO
- Up to 100 kg
- Key feature
- Fully autonomous (no pilots, no ground controllers)
- Military applications
- Tactically Responsive Launch (AFRL, US Space Force contracts)
- Founded
- 2016, Huntsville, Alabama, USA
About
Ravn X is Aevum’s unmanned autonomous aircraft system (UAS) designed to air-launch an orbital rocket to deliver small satellites to LEO and SSO. The Ravn X aircraft is the world’s largest known autonomous cargo aircraft — a jet-powered UAS roughly the size of a business jet — that carries a two-stage rocket under its fuselage and releases it at altitude for a self-igniting ascent to orbit.
The key differentiator is full autonomous operation: no human pilots, no human ground controllers (the mission runs autonomously from takeoff to payload deployment). Aevum claims this dramatically reduces the cost and complexity of launch preparation compared to human-operated air-launch or ground-launch systems. The vehicle targets payloads up to 100 kg to low sun-synchronous orbit.
Aevum, founded in 2016 in Huntsville, Alabama, has secured contracts with the US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and US Space Force for responsive launch services. The company’s approach is particularly suited to Tactically Responsive Launch (TRL) applications where the military needs to deploy small satellites on very short notice (hours vs. weeks for traditional launches).
Documentation
No public datasheet yet — request the datasheet / ICD from the supplier.