• X-59 Quiet SuperSonic Technology X-plane
• Critical Ground Tests Completed Successfully

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The X-59 is a quiet supersonic experimental aircraft, one-of-a-kind, built to fly at supersonic speeds without producing loud sonic booms that occur when an aircraft flies faster than the speed of sound. Instead, the X-59 is anticipated to generate a quiet sonic “thump”, that may barely be heard on the ground.

According to NASA, the X-59 is back at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California, following several months of critical ground tests in Ft. Worth, Texas, which were completed successfully.

NASA revealed: “Ground tests on the X-59 were done to ensure the aircraft’s ability to withstand the loads and stresses of supersonic flight – or flight at speeds faster than Mach 1. The vehicle’s fuel systems were also calibrated and tested at Lockheed Martin’s Ft. Worth facilities. With its return to California, the X-59 will undergo further ground tests as it approaches full completion of its development and continues to make progress on its way to first flight.”

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