Castelion Secures U.S. Army and Navy Contracts for Blackbeard Hypersonic Weapon Integration
U.S. defense startup Castelion announced that it has secured contracts with the U.S. Army and Navy to integrate its hypersonic Blackbeard weapon system onto operational platforms. The agreements include live-fire demonstrations and mark a step forward in the Department of War’s push to adopt fast, cost-effective long-range strike capabilities. “These integration contracts validate that affordability and speed are critical to modern deterrence,” said Bryon Hargis, Castelion’s Chief Executive Officer. “Castelion leads the market designing for manufacturability and rapid iteration, enabling the Department of War to move faster from concept to capability.” The specific terms of Castelion’s agreements with both the Army and Navy were not revealed.
Blackbeard is Castelion’s first long-range hypersonic weapon, built for mass production and rapid deployment following integration and testing. The system uses integrated propulsion and guidance technology to deliver high performance at significantly lower cost than traditional systems, though still in the hundreds of thousands of dollars per unit. “Blackbeard GL [Ground Launch] is not a replacement to the Long Range Hypersonic Weapons (LRHW) as it will not reach similar velocities nor range,” the U.S. Army wrote in its budget documents. “The goal of Blackbeard GL is to deliver approximately 80 (percent) of the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) Increment 4 capability at a significantly reduced cost.”
Castelion will collaborate with the Army to install the Blackbeard system onto platforms such as the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), a weapon featured prominently during the war in Ukraine. Other U.S. defense companies including Stratolaunch, Raytheon, and Lockheed Martin are also working on hypersonic technology, which could lead to lucrative government contracts. President Trump’s proposed 2026 budget, still pending approval, includes $25 million for similar future integration projects
Founded in 2022, Castelion is based in Torrance, California, with additional development facilities in Texas. The company has completed over 20 developmental test flights of Blackbeard in under 18 months, highlighting its rapid and scalable weapons development model. Castelion plans to manufacture thousands of units annually once full-scale production begins.
Castelion’s contracts with the US Army and Navy represent an important move to expand the Pentagon’s options for affordable hypersonic strike capabilities. Meanwhile, China and Russia continue to advance their own hypersonic weapons programs, aiming to create missiles capable of changing direction and bypassing traditional defenses, while traveling at speeds exceeding five times the speed of sound.