When the Top Gun: Maverick team was looking to push the envelope and stand true to Maverick’s Need for Speed, Skunk Works was their first call.
We partnered with the film’s creative team to collaborate on bringing our expertise in hypersonic capabilities and aircraft design to the big screen.
Lockheed Martin Skunk Works® thrives on tackling seemingly impossible work, developing technologies for tomorrow’s challenges before the need is even identified.
From creating radar evading stealth capabilities to X-planes that redefine the sonic boom to many revolutionary technologies in between, Skunk Works has a long tradition of quickly developing enduring innovation for when it’s needed most.
Hypersonic technology, or the ability to travel at 60 miles per minute or faster, is a capability our team continues to advance today by leveraging more than 30 years of hypersonic investments and development and testing experience.
Just like most Skunk Works projects, the team supporting the film and the development of the Darkstar aircraft continued their work in secrecy. Our Skunks worked with the film production team to understand their needs, then quietly worked on the design and build until the concept was revealed to the world in the film.
Lockheed Martin conceptual designers, engineers and aircraft model developers work each day to bring aircraft concepts for today and tomorrow to life. These aircraft support critical global security missions and advance the future of aviation and technology.