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The ability to counter individual drones and complex swarms is becoming increasingly critical on the battlefield of today and will be even more so on those of the future. In response to such threats, Lockheed Martin recently unveiled the MORFIUS X-Rotor. TWZ’s Jamie Hunter spoke with Jason Reynolds, Lockheed Martin’s Vice President of Integrated Air & Missile Defense, at the Space and Missile Defense Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama, about MORFIUS in detail.

This counter-UAS system features a High Power Microwave (HPM) payload that can reportedly neutralize more than 50 adversary drones during a single sortie. The cross-wing configuration allows MORFIUS to take off and land vertically, and it is designed specifically for field recovery and rapid reuse. After launch, the drone uses proprietary algorithms to hunt and kill enemy drones using an active radio-frequency seeker onboard. The big advantage is that MORFIUS X-Rotor can kill a lot of drones and be reused to kill more over and over. Many interceptor drones in use today are self sacrificing in order to do their job.

Lockheed Martin says it has completed live-fire testing and is accelerating production to meet demand.

“Counter-UAS is a hot topic around the world. We took MORFIUS to the Farnborough Airshow; every single person was interested in understanding the technology, the availability, the production rates. This system is going to be proliferated because we need to basically protect against drones that are single or swarming and protect our critical assets, critical sites, and defend what matters most,” Reynolds told us.

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Meet MORFIUS: The Drone Designed To Zap Other Drones

We are giddy as we reach the summit, breathless with exertion and a guileless, childlike joy. In every direction the jagged peaks of Slovakia’s High Tatras stretch out into the distance, nubs on a colossal spine, glittering lakes embedded like shards of glass far below the rocky, ice-streaked slopes. An eagle wheels above. Somewhere on the lunar landscape a marmot squeaks. Easy laughs ricochet around the group, photos are snapped, backs thumped, words of encouragement offered to the more vertigo-inclined.

The summit of Slovakia’s Kôprovský štít had been playing a Kafkaesque game of mountain mirage with us for several hours, always just over the next ridge which, once conquered, revealed a string of further, seemingly endless ridges. Eight hours and about 23km after we had set off on our hike through the Vysoké Tatry mountain range, an eddy of smiles rippled from person to person (some, granted, of the more clenched-teeth variety). “Yes, team! We did it!” Roman, our high-spirited Slovakian mountain guide, stood atop the tip, clasping each of our hands in congratulation as we crested the peak.

Just 24 hours earlier, we had been a ragtag group of 11 strangers making small talk in London’s Luton airport. But here, on a vertiginous mountain top 2,367 metres (7,765ft) above sea level, friendships were budding, veneers falling away. And this was it: the reason each of us had embarked on an expedition to the remote wilderness of the Tatras with a bunch of people we didn’t know. Connections forged during the shared toil of the climb; the sheer wonder at making it to this place where rock meets sky.

Community hiking is experiencing a surge in popularity, with countless groups springing up in the past few years, uniting tens of thousands of people for outdoor adventures. There are women-only groups, LGBTQ+ groups, Black, Indigenous and people of colour (Bipoc) collectives, those catering to slow walkers, “soft girls”, parents, dog owners. Our four-day trip to Slovakia was organised by hiked.up in partnership with Slovakian tour operator Tatra Escapes. Hiked.up began during Covid, with childhood friends Matt and Adam escaping lockdown stasis on walks around Essex, and has since evolved into a thousands-strong community offering expeditions across the UK and Europe.

“The demographic is so vast,” Matt tells me as we pick our way across a boulder field. “Young people, older people, some super-fit, others new to hiking. Most come alone. People join for mental health reasons, or just to get out and have fun, meet new people. You connect with people you might not expect to talk to day-to-day at our events.”

We are a motley crew in ability, age and disposition, hailing from all corners of the UK. The roll call of professions includes a tennis coach, landscape architect, maths teacher, physiotherapist, art adviser and construction site manager. But the stories I’m told track similar contours: ennui at the digitisation of modern life and city confines; a yearning for nature and the chance to connect with like-minded individuals beyond booze-soaked social settings.

Louis, a 24-year-old physiotherapist, believes community hiking taps into something fundamental. “Humans are designed to connect outdoors,” he says. “This is what we did thousands of years ago.” Emma, a 32-year-old teacher, sees hiking groups as a response to urban loneliness and atomisation. “People want to come together without it being centred on drinking or going out; connecting in a more conscious way.”

I admit to a degree of trepidation on the first evening, sitting outside our wooden lodge in Slovak Paradise national park, the setting sun splashing gold and purple across the sky. A jangle of nerves and travel fatigue had created a somewhat jarring group dynamic; the quieter members practically tongue-tied while the extroverts bellowed across plates of creamy bryndzové halušky (potato dumplings with creamy sheep’s cheese and crispy bacon). Was this collection of strangers going to find a rhythm, let alone a sense of camaraderie?

The following morning we tumbled out of the minibus on to the Štrba turistika trail. The sun beat down benignly as we followed a winding path along the mountainside, a valley of deep green pine fanning out below. Our other guide, Uri, a gentle giant with a calm demeanour and bottomless supply of small, sweet cherries, suggested we let silence settle among us, better to hear the birds, the wind, the whisper of the pines.

The High Tatras – a string of snow-dusted peaks straddling the Slovak-Polish border – are the highest range in the Carpathians and among the most dramatic in Europe. Singular in their compact yet lofty nature – with peaks cresting 2,600 metres – they compress an extraordinary diversity of terrain into a narrow alpine arc.

Long shrouded in mysticism and lore, for centuries few dared explore their rugged expanses, believed to be the domain of dragons and ogres. But over the past 250 years, mountaineering has become firmly embedded in Slovakian national identity, the Tatras etched on the national coat of arms and eulogised in the national anthem. The establishment of Tatranský národný park in Slovakia in 1949 and Tatrzański park narodowy in Poland in 1954 – one of the world’s first cross-border protected regions – has kept the land pristine and wild. Camping and swimming are not permitted, and while I longed to cool off in the crystalline alpine streams, I was thankful for the foresight.

Before long, we had broken free of pine and earth and were met with a startling expanse of rock and sky. Sun-dappled forest and wildflower-strewn meadows were replaced by clutches of dwarf pine and obstinate patches of ice amid a tumble of granite outcrops that jut from the earth like crooked shark’s teeth. Reality receded imperceptibly into the distance till there was nothing but the placement of each foot on stone, the kiss of cool mountain breeze, the deafening gallop of my heartbeat.

There is something about the combination of physical exertion and shared adventure that peels back the layers in which we shroud ourselves. It was not long before group discussion had turned to bowel movements, disappointing orgasms and dating apps. We spent the second day weaving our way along a fairytale trail of wooden ladders, steep staircases and fallen logs through a valley enclosed by steep earthen banks and caves winking from limestone faces. Emerging into bright sunshine and a mountain refuge set on a sprawling viridescent meadow, we nursed refreshing pints of Zlatý Bažant, a comfortable silence settling among us like that between old friends.

It didn’t all go smoothly. Tensions flared when an organisational miscommunication left the group without lunch on a nine-hour hike. But, ultimately, that unforeseen trial bound us closer together. When water was scarce, tummies grumbling and boots beginning to bite, it was kindness and generosity that ruled the day – last sips meted out equitably, faster walkers hanging back for blister-addled hobblers, emergency tampons and pee-buddies in abundance.

Steeling ourselves for another ascent of about 2,000 metres, one member of the group erupted in a burst of jubilation: “I’ve got fig rolls!” A cheer rose up from our perch on the mountainside.

The climb was gruelling, the views spectacular, but most of us had come in search of something a little harder to find. Listening to the chorus of gleeful voices echo across the valley, I thought we might just have found it.

The four-day trip to Slovakia was provided by hiked.up and Tatra Escapes and cost £650pp (£600 for a shared room). It included Košice airport transfers, three nights at Ranč Podlesok Relax on a B&B basis, and guides. Follow @hiked.up for details of future expeditions

A MASSIVE new theme park just for kids has opened this week.

Universal Kids Resort in Frisco, Texas officially opened on July 1 and is home to seven different worlds all themed around popular TV and film characters.

The entire American theme park has been built with kids aged 3-8 in mind, with the lands featuring Jurassic World, Trolls, Puss in Boots and Gabby’s Dollhouse.

Inside are a number of interactive and immersive experiences as well, such as a Trolls dance party and a Puss in Boots-themed puppet show.

Across the park there are loads of different attractions including rollercoasters, swing rides, a lazy river ride and even a splash park ideal for the warm Texan weather.

For example, you can head on Barnacle Bus, where you will see Bikini Bottom from SpongeBob SquarePants, including SpongeBob’s pet Gary the Snail.

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If you are a fan of Jurassic World, you can head on the Cretaceous Coaster to find Baby Bumpy, the curious Ankylosaurus who has gone missing.

The roller coaster ride features many twists and turns as well as peaks and valleys as you try and spot Baby Bumpy.

For something a little calmer, there’s Shrek and Fiona’s Happily Ogre After ride which takes you on a gentle journey through Shrek and Fiona’s swamp and even the dragon’s castle.

For kids needing some time to calm down from all the excitement, there are also sensory gardens.

And of course, they can meet their favourite characters as well.

When it comes to finding a spot to grab a bite to eat, there is a choice of 10 restaurants and cafes at the theme park.

SpongeBob fans can head to Goofy Goober’s for burgers, chicken sandwiches, hot dogs and giant ice cream sundaes.

Alternatively, you could drop into the Jurassic World Canteen complete with dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets.

The park has its very own hotel too, which can be found close to the entrance.

Inside, the hotel boasts 300 rooms and suites, and if that was’’t enough, it has three restaurants and its own pool too.

And if you stay at the hotel, you’ll get early access to the park before the general public can enter.

There are different tickets available for the theme park including one-day tickets costing from $54.99 (£40.98).

There’s then also two-day admission tickets costing from $73.99 (£55.15) (though, this pass must be used in two consecutive days).

Or you could opt for an annual pass, which costs $129.99 (£96.88).

Aurora Flight Sciences is now putting the wings on the X-65 experimental drone. This is an important step forward for the X-65, which is designed to maneuver with bursts of air rather than traditional control surfaces. This is technology that could have significant implications for future military and civilian aircraft developments, especially when it comes to stealthy designs.

The X-65 is being developed under the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Control of Revolutionary Aircraft with Novel Effectors (CRANE) program, which kicked off back in 2020. DARPA subsequently chose Aurora Flight Sciences, a subsidiary of Boeing, to proceed alone with the development of its design. Aurora moved into the latest phase of the program in 2024 and is now targeting a first flight next year. CRANE has suffered several delays and cost growth over the years, which we will come back to later on.

“The wings have arrived — the next big milestone for X‑65!” Aurora Flight Sciences wrote in a post on its official account on X today. “Built at our WV [West Virginia] facility, the triangular wings enable active flow control testing across multiple sweeps. Integration is underway in VA as we push toward first flight for the @DARPA CRANE program.”

In November 2025, Aurora had also announced progress in construction of the central fuselage. The company has also done wind tunnel testing of subscale models, as well as digital modeling in past phases of CRANE.

The X-65 has a so-called Co-Planar Joined Wing (CJW) planform that includes two sets of wings attached that merge together at the tips, creating the triangular shape on either side. They also have small extensions that extend from those tips, giving the drone a 30-foot wingspan. The design also has a twin vertical tail arrangement.

There is a chin air intake under the forward fuselage, as well as a single exhaust. Renderings have shown that the design will have on t op of the forward end of the fuselage. At the time of writing, neither Aurora nor DAPRA appear to have disclosed details about the drone’s main propulsion arrangement. The X-65 is said to have a gross weight of approximately 7,000 pounds.

As noted, the most intrigueing aspect of the X-65 is the banks of active flow control (AFC) “effectors” that use bursts of highly pressurized air to roll, pitch, and yaw. Traditionally, fixed-wing aircraft use a mixture of flaps, rudders, and other surfaces that physically move to maneuver in flight.

“The AFC system supplies pressurized air to fourteen AFC effectors embedded across all flying surfaces,” according to a press release Aurora put out last year. “The triangular wing design enables testing across multiple wing sweeps and is modular with replaceable outboard wings and swappable AFC effectors to allow for future testing of additional AFC designs.”

“The X-65 will be built with two sets of control actuators – traditional flaps and rudders as well as AFC effectors embedded across all the lifting surfaces,” a 2024 press release from DARPA also notes. “This will both minimize risk and maximize the program’s insight into control effectiveness. The plane’s performance with traditional control surfaces will serve as a baseline; successive tests will selectively lock down moving surfaces, using AFC effectors instead.”

“The X-65 conventional surfaces are like training wheels to help us understand how AFC can be used in place of traditional flaps and rudders,” Dr. Richard Wlezien, then the CRANE program manager at DARPA, also said at that time. “We’ll have sensors in place to monitor how the AFC effectors’ performance compares with traditional control mechanisms, and these data will help us better understand how AFC could revolutionize both military and commercial craft in the future.”

“We’re building the X-65 as a modular platform – wing sections and the AFC effectors can easily be swapped out – to allow it to live on as a test asset for DARPA and other agencies long after CRANE concludes,” Wlezien also noted.

Being able to eliminate traditional moving control surfaces presents a host of potential benefits, as TWZ has detailed in past reporting on the CRANE program:

“Getting rid of traditional control surfaces inherently allows for a design to be more aerodynamic, and therefore fly in a more efficient manner, especially at higher altitudes. An aircraft with an AFC system doesn’t need the various actuators and other components to move things like ailerons and rudders, offering new ways to reduce weight and bulk.”

“A lighter and more streamlined aircraft design using an AFC system might be capable of greater maneuverability. This could be particularly true for uncrewed types that also do not have to worry about the physical limitations of a pilot.”

“The elimination of so many moving parts also means fewer things that can break, improving safety and reliability. This would do away with various maintenance and logistics requirements, too. It might make a military design more resilient to battle damage and easier to fix, as well.”

All of this could be especially valuable for stealthy aircraft designs, as we previously wrote:

“While all of this could be beneficial for many aircraft type, AFC technology could be especially significant when applied to stealth designs. Designers of stealthy aircraft have to be mindful of any joints or other gaps between exposed surfaces, and try to generally keep them to a minimum, to ensure the radar cross-section remains as low as possible.“

“As such, traditional control surfaces, which by definition cannot always be flush with the rest of the aircraft’s external shape, are a major and currently inescapable issue. Fly-by-wire designs also keep these surfaces fluttering at all times to keep the stealthy aircraft stable in forward flight. AFC technology holds the promise of being able to change this reality and make it easier to optimize the radar-evading qualities of a stealthy design. Other technologies, like the ability to dynamically warp wing structures to provide flight control, could also help in future stealthy aircraft radar signature control.”

A design like the X-65 that has the option of using either traditional control surfaces or AFCs could offer further flexibility.

Deeper exploration of the potential of an AFC design is exactly the point of DARPA’s CRANE program, which is now aiming to kick off actual flight testing next year. As mentioned, there have been multiple delays in work on the X-65 over the years. The original goal was for the drone to fly for the first time in 2025.

“The costs to produce the prototype aircraft for test flights ended up being higher than expected” and “DARPA chose to ‘strategically pause’ the X-65’s development and reevaluate the program,” Defense News reported in November 2025. Aurora also “confirmed technical and supply chain challenges were a factor in the program delays, as well as the inherent riskiness involved in working on a DARPA project.”

It should be noted here that this is not the first time AFC technology has been experimented with. U.K.-headquartered BAE Systems, which also submitted a design for CRANE, tested a flying subscale AFC-equipped design called MAGMA in the 2010s, which you can learn more about here.

MAGMA first flight, September 2017

Pentagon budget documents show that DARPA has received nearly $63 million in funding for CRANE since Fiscal Year 2024, when the program entered its third phase. DARPA is not asking for any additional money for this effort in Fiscal Year 2027, which it says reflects the expectation that it will conclude by the end of next year. As DARPA has said in the past, future programs could further continued use of the X-65 drone, as well as the technology it demonstrates.

“We’re excited to continue our longstanding partnership with DARPA to complete the build of the X-65 aircraft and demonstrate the capabilities of active flow control in flight,” Larry Wirsing, Aurora’s Vice President VP of aircraft development, said in a statement last year. “The X-65 platform will be an enduring flight test asset, and we’re confident that future aircraft designs and research missions will be able to leverage the underlying technologies and flight test data.”

With its wings finally delivered, the X-65 continues to take shape as Aurora and DARPA push toward finally getting the drone and its novel control arrangement into the air.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com