Promotional render of XLS during a mission. Image: Kwingo_NL

Peregrine Orbital has officially announced its partnered development with DARPA and Celestial Space Corporation of its XLS-1 a reusable, rocket launching spaceplane designed to enable rapid response satellite launch and hypersonic testing from launch sites around the world. The program aims to reduce the cost, preparation time, and infrastructure needed for space access while offering capabilities that could support both commercial and defence needs.

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The XLS-1 will be capable of taking off on a near vertical ascent powered by Peregrine’s in-house VX-200 methane fueled engine, transition to horizontal ascent before deploying a small rocket which will carry payloads into Earth orbit. After separation, the spaceplane will autonomously glide back to its launch site, landing on a standard runway and ready for refurbishment and reflight in a matter of days.

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“XLS-1 is a leap toward a future where launching to orbit is as flexible as modern aviation,” said Peregrine CEO and founder, Arson. “Our goal is to support everything from satellites to hypersonic testbeds without waiting weeks for a new rocket and the need for high complex GSE.”

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The company has completed subscale testing and is building a flight capable demonstrator, which is expected to begin ground trials this year. The vehicle’s primary propulsion system, the VX-200, is a staged combustion engine optimized for reusability and horizontal integration designed to minimise maintenance between flights.

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“This is our generation’s answer to the Space Shuttle, but leaner, faster, and built for repeat use,” said Arson. “We’re designing XLS to launch, land, get a fresh upper stage, and be back on the pad in just days.”

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The Catfish rocket, mounted to the back of the XLS, is not reusable by design. It will be built with cost effective materials and minimal hardware, meant to be simple, affordable, and easy to mass produce. Powered by a single tap-off cycle engine, each stage is designed for single use, but production will be so streamlined that dozens can be stored in advance, ready to be mounted for flight.

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“We expect to have an entire hangar filled with Catfish stages,” said Arson. “They’re the bullet, and XLS is the revolver.”

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The company sees this pairing as the most efficient approach to achieving high launch cadence without overengineering. Reusability where it counts, expendability where it's economical.

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Dual Use Capability and Strategic Interest

While Peregrine Orbital positions XLS primarily as a commercial launcher, the project has seen interest from defense agencies who are seeking responsive launch options. A spaceplane like XLS offer the advantage of launch on demand flexibility from launch sites around the world, bypassing congested or vulnerable ground infrastructure.

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The company is rumored to be engaged in early stage discussions with US defence and intelligence officials about potential collaboration, including on orbit deployment of tactical assets or data relay satellites in high risk or time sensitive environments.

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“Rapid launch isn’t just a capability, it’s a strategic necessity,” said Peregrine's program manager. “XLS could enable on the fly satellite repair, crisis response, and deployment in ways that current vertical launch systems simply can’t.”

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The US military has emphasised the need for “tactically responsive space,” especially amid growing concerns about space based threats. XLS’s ability to launch from existing pads and return for rapid reuse aligns closely with these strategic goals.

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While Arson declined to confirm any defence contracts, its suggested early testing may occur in partnership with DoD entities or intelligence services.

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Context, Competition, and Collaboration

Peregrine joins a very small field of RoSpace groups working toward the resurgence of winged space vehicles. Projects like GTRAD's X-4 and X-5 show an interest in reusable spaceplane systems as governments, satellite manufacturers, and human spaceflight opportunities look beyond traditional expendable vehicles.

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Peregrine has completed propulsion testing on subscale components and recently began construction of its dedicated hangar and processing facility at Cape Canaveral. A full scale ground test article of the XLS-1 vehicle is expected to roll out this month, with a pathfinder flight planned by July.

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However, Peregrine’s XLS differentiates itself with its scale and turnaround goals. The company claims the system could fly up to 12 missions per year with a single vehicle, with plans to construct three total spaceplanes, and the possibility of expansion if needed.

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Peregrine Orbital isn’t building XLS-1 alone. The program is a collaboration between Peregrine Orbital, Celestial Space Corporation, and DARPA, each bringing their specialised expertise. While Peregrine leads overall vehicle development, integration, and operations, Celestial Space plays a role in propulsion development and various flight systems.

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Celestial is responsible for key components of the XLS stack, including propulsion and ground to orbit transition technology, some of which is derived from its work on the Acheron and Osiris rockets. The company is also contributing advanced flight software architecture, enabling the XLS-1 to autonomously land on remote runways with minimal ground intervention.

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“Spaceplanes require a different kind of intelligence,” said Kwingo, CSC’s founder and CEO. “We’re adapting our guidance stack for serious dynamic flight."

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With a shared vision of high cadence space access and minimal refurbishment between flights, Celestial and Peregrine aim to demonstrate responsive launch capability with their partnership on this program. 

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DARPA, meanwhile, serves as the program’s innovation source and primary government partner, keep XLS-1 aligned with national interests in rapid launch on demand capabilities and defence related tech demonstrations.

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The three organisations are currently working together to develop two subscale demonstrators. The USOR 1 and 2 vehicles are a part of the initial development phase, where they will eventually fly to test various subsystems and designs in a real flight environment.

The Unpiloted Sub-Orbital Rocketplane 1 is currently first in line for development, and is rumored to be almost completed. It is a uncrewed, subscale spacecraft for the purpose of testing the heatshield tiles and reinforced composite structures for the XLS. 

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The USOR-2 vehicle will be used to study the main aerodynamic, thermal, acoustic and stability characteristics of the XLS. It follows upon the USOR-1 reentry test vehicle.

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All USOR vehicles will be put into a suborbital polar trajectory by the Osiris Sub-Orbital rocket variant launched from SLC-01 in Vlieland Netherlands, and will splash down in the North Sea.

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Path to Crewed Spaceflight? Peregrine Suggests XLS May Evolve

Although XLS-1 is currently designed for uncrewed payloads, Arson hinted at the company’s longer term ambitions, some of which include sending humans to orbit.

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“There’s nothing in the core XLS architecture that prevents scaling it up,” Arson said in a recent interview. “We’re absolutely exploring a larger version capable of carrying crew in an SSTO configuration.”

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While crewed spaceflight remains farther off, Arson suggested that the foundational technologies—autonomous landing, reusability, and rapid turnaround, are being validated on XLS-1 with that eventual goal in mind.

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“A system where you go from hangar to orbit and back, with a human crew, in under 24 hours. That’s what this could lead to.”

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If Peregrine can demonstrate reliable reusability with XLS-1, it would mark one of the few serious steps toward a true spaceplane based launch system for RoSpace in years.

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