NASA Prepares X-59 for Second Flight

NASA is preparing its X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft for its second flight, expected to take place this week from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. The flight is anticipated ahead of a scheduled NASA media conference on March 19, which will follow the aircraft’s next sortie, although the agency has not specified an exact timing for the flight itself.

During the planned mission, the X-59 will depart from Armstrong and conduct a flight of approximately one hour, including a takeoff and landing at nearby Edwards Air Force Base. NASA said it plans for the aircraft to cruise at about 230 mph at 12,000 feet before it climbs up to 20,000 feet and accelerates to around 260 mph.

Part of NASA’s Quesst mission, the X-59 completed its first flight in October 2025, when NASA test pilot Nils Larson conducted initial evaluations of handling qualities and aircraft systems during a brief shakedown flight.

This second flight is intended to serve as the first of a series of envelope expansion testing flights. NASA said that it will gradually increase the aircraft’s speed and altitude during this phase to assess performance and safety under increasingly more demanding conditions.

The X-59 was developed in partnership with Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works and is designed to study reduced-noise supersonic flight by modifying the aircraft’s shape to alter shockwave patterns. Data gathered during these flights will be used to inform research into potential future supersonic operations over land.