NASA life support technician Mathew Sechler assists in installing the X-59 ejection seat into the aircraft at the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, Calif. Completion of the seat installation marks a milestone in the integration of the aircraft, which is now being prepared for final ground tests.
Lockheed Martin
The team preparing NASA’s X-59 continues to conduct tests to prepare the quiet, supersonic aircraft for its first flight, including three key structural tests and critical inspections en route to flight.
The X-59 is an experimental aircraft that can fly faster than sound without creating a loud sonic boom. It will be the first of its kind to fly, with the goal of collecting sound data for NASA’s Quest mission, which could open the door to commercial supersonic flights over land in the future.
Because of its unique design, the X-59 development team must do everything in their power to predict every aspect of the aircraft before it even takes off, including how the fuselage, wings and control surfaces will perform in flight. This means conducting tests on the ground to give the team the data they need to validate the models they develop.
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