In 2021, as US defence contractors sketched concepts for a futuristic drone controlled by blasts of air instead of mechanical flaps, China quietly flew one.
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Now, newly published research has revealed for the first time details of how Beijing outpaced Washington in this pivotal arms race.
Next-generation air dominance hinges on eliminating traditional control surfaces. Rudders, flaps and tail fins create radar reflections and thermal signatures.
Assist or even replace them with fluidic systems – steering jets via precise air pulses – and you gain more invisibility, fuel efficiency and even underwater manoeuvrability.
The Pentagon recognised this early on, but it was not until 2023 that the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) greenlit the X-65 programme, a radical drone designed to validate fluidic flight control, also known as CRANE (Control of Revolutionary Aircraft with Novel Effectors).
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The legendary US agency, birthplace of stealth jets and GPS, has always been a leader in futuristic tech.