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| Operator | NASDA |
|---|---|
| Website | At JAXA.jp |
| Apogee | 110 km (68 mi) |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Manufacturer | Mitsubishi Heavy Industries |
| Launch mass | 1,054 kg (2,324 lb) |
| Dimensions | Length:4.40 m (14.4 ft) Span:1.36 m (4 ft 6 in) Height:1.04 m (3 ft 5 in) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | February 11, 1996 |
| Rocket | J-I |
| Launch site | LA-N, Tanegashima Space Center |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | splashed down recovery failed |
| Landing date | February 11, 1996 |
| Landing site | Pacific Ocean near Chichi-jima |
HYFLEX (Hypersonic Flight Experiment) was a National Space Development Agency of Japan reentry demonstrator prototype which was launched in 1996 on the only flight of the J-I launcher. It was a successor of OREX and was a precursor for the Japanese space shuttle HOPE-X.
HYFLEX tested the carbon-carbon heat shielding tiles that were intended to be used on HOPE, as well as having the same body shaping in order to gather data on hypersonic lifting. HYFLEX flew in space at 110 kilometers (68 mi) altitude and succeeded in re-entry, but sank in the Pacific after splashdown before it could be recovered.