ROOK: Rapid Operations Over Kilometers

Hop Aero is developing a reusable, rocket-powered vehicle designed for high-speed, point-to-point cargo delivery. This system combines vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL), suborbital flight, and autonomous recovery to enable rapid logistics over intercontinental distances—without reliance on runways or traditional infrastructure. The goal is to dramatically reduce delivery times for critical payloads in both defense and commercial settings, including scenarios where speed, resilience, and access are paramount. In this Phase II effort, Hop Aero will develop an Engineering Design Unit (EDU) of a scale demonstrator vehicle that integrates key technologies necessary for operational deployment. These include a COTS-based propulsion system, guidance and navigation avionics, aerodynamic structures, and autonomous landing logic tailored to unprepared or degraded environments. The EDU will serve as the physical and functional foundation for future flight testing and system maturation. This work builds on prior feasibility studies and early design iterations, and supports DAF goals related to agile logistics, autonomous system integration, and resilient supply chains. By maturing core subsystems in a fully integrated platform, the project lays the groundwork for a new class of dual-use logistics vehicles capable of delivering cargo at unprecedented speed and flexibility.