NASA's X-59 'Quiet' Supersonic Jet Makes Historic 1st Flight
The X-59 is NASA's experimental new jet built to break the sound barrier without generating the thunderous sonic booms typically associated with supersonic flight.
After taxiing out of the U.S. Air Force's (USAF) Plant 42 facility, the X-59 took off from the Palmdale Regional Airport in California today (Oct. 28) at 10:13 a.m. EDT (1413 GMT).
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It has been planned that after the X-59’s first flight, it will be moved to NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center, which is collocated with Edwards Air Force Base in California, for further test flights.
Ahead of the first flight, NASA had outlined its plans for the milestone sortie. This would be a lower-altitude loop at about 240 miles per hour to check system integration. It will be followed by the first phase of flight testing, focused on verifying the X-59’s airworthiness and safety. During subsequent test flights, the X-59 will go higher and faster, eventually exceeding the speed of sound.
Although there were no public announcements, the first flight had been expected earlier this month but was scrubbed for unknown reasons. TWZ has reached out to NASA for more information in relation to today’s flight.
A product of Lockheed Martin’s famed Skunk Works advanced projects division, the X-59 was rolled out at the Skunk Works facility within Palmdale in January 2024.
Top Photo: Matt Hartman
Sources: SPACE.COM; The War Zone
