What Happened
4 min readPreparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) As its team prepared for second flight, NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft underwent engine run testing on Thursday, March 12, at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California.NASA/Jim Ross NASA’s X-59 experimental aircraft is preparing for its second flight, a step that will set the pace for more flight testing in 2026. Over the coming months, NASA will take the quiet supersonic jet faster and higher, while validating safety and performance, a process known as envelope expansion. NASA test pilot Jim “Clue” Less will be at the X-59’s controls for second flight.
Why It Matters
Less will take off and land at Edwards Air Force Base, near the X-59’s home at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. “This will be the first time I’ve flown an X-plane,” Less said.
Key Details
- “I think I’ll mostly be focused on getting the test cards done and getting them done correctly. It’ll probably sink in later that I was in the X-59.” Less will be accompanied by NASA test pilot Nils Larson, who will be flying nearby in a NASA F/A-18 aircraft to observe the X-59. The X-59 made its first flight Oct.
- 28, 2025, with Larson as pilot.
- Afterward, NASA and contractor Lockheed Martin completed an extensive round of post-flight maintenance and inspections.
- The work involved removing the engine, a section of the tail known as the lower empennage, the seat, and more than 70 panels to perform inspections.
Background Context
4 min readPreparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) As its team prepared for second flight, NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft underwent engine run testing on Thursday, March 12, at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California.NASA/Jim Ross NASA’s X-59 experimental aircraft is preparing for its second flight, a step that will set the pace for more flight testing in 2026. Over the coming months, NASA will take the quiet supersonic jet faster and higher, while validating safety and performance, a process known as envelope expansion. NASA test pilot Jim “Clue” Less will be at the X-59’s controls for second flight.
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Source: NASA – Original Link
Source: NASA