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The disclosed technology provides a multistage system for evaluating the free-flight behavior of test articles across of the supersonic, transonic, and subsonic regimes. First, a drop platform is lifted to high altitudes using a lifting device, such as a stratospheric balloon. The drop platform houses multiple projectiles, each containing an ejection mechanism, an on-board avionics suit, and an instrumented test article. Upon reaching the target altitude via the lifting device, the drop platform releases the projectiles sequentially. Each projectile accelerates to a target speed and altitude before ejecting its test article into the freestream. The test articles, such as a scaled re-entry capsule, then collect flight data during their descent through the various Mach regimes, providing valuable insights into their flight performance under mission-relevant conditions. This innovative testing system offers several benefits. It enables the simultaneous testing of multiple vehicles, facilitating the evaluation of design variations as well as statistical analyses of vehicle behavior. This system also provides significant cost savings in comparison to other state-of-the-art testing methods, such as ballistic range testing. Additionally, the test articles within each projectile are easily interchangeable through a simple, modular change of a support surface in the ejection mechanism. This flexibility enables the system to accommodate a range of other aerodynamic technologies, including other vehicles, parachutes, propulsion systems, and defense technologies. This system can enhance the efficiency and robustness of reentry vehicle design, testing, and simulation operations through the collection of rich, flight-relevant data.