Aircraft
Textron AirLand Reports Scorpion Progress, Changes
Flight testing of the private-venture combat jet continues, and a second prototype is planned
The prototype Scorpion flies over Corfe Castle in the UK during the type's first international excursion to RIAT and Farnborough last July. (photo: Jamie Hunter/Textron Airland)
The prototype Scorpion flies over Corfe Castle in the UK during the type's first international excursion to RIAT and Farnborough last July. (photo: Jamie Hunter/Textron Airland)

Encouraged by market reaction to the Scorpion surveillance and strike aircraft, Textron AirLand will build a second prototype incorporating some minor design changes, and to provide an additional platform for sensor integration and customer demonstrations. Speaking at the Royal Aeronautical Society in London this week, chief engineer and program manager Dale Tutt said that achieving a firm order for the private-venture jet is “not a matter of ‘if,’ but rather ‘when.’” According to Textron AirLand, the Scorpion “targets a niche that exists beyond the capability of the turboprop but below the costly-to-operate fourth and fifth generation combat aircraft.”