Firebird is meant to be quiet due to its spy/surveillance mission set. Trying to get the drop on some bad guys while droning overhead like a buzz saw sort of defeats the point. Its five-bladed prop helps with its audible signature but clearly, other measures have been taken to make it as silent as possible.

As the H03's testing commences hopefully Scaled Composites will tell us a little bit more about the aircraft and even possibly who is slated to take ownership of it. Its unique and highly flexible feature set seems as if it would be really attractive, especially to export customers who can't afford all different types of manned and unmanned aerial surveillance assets. Just being able to easily forward-deploy the H03 to new locales with a pilot at the controls is a huge advantage over strictly unmanned medium altitude long endurance platforms. Other high-altitude, prop-driven surveillance aircraft do exist and remain in demand, but none are built to be optionally manned.

We also know that the EO/IR sensor ball is just the start of the aircraft's payload capabilities and it's designed to carry many types of systems, including radars, electronic intelligence suites, air sampling gear, and possibly even weapons. Seeing that Scaled Composites is owned by Northrop Grumman, its parent company may now have a product to offer that nobody can really compete directly with.

We will keep you in the loop as to any new developments with this truly intriguing aircraft.

Contact the author: Tyler@thedrive.com