NASA’s Supersonic X-59 Is on the Move

Agency’s final stage of ground testing will culminate in the experimental model’s inaugural flight, targeted for later this year.

Jack Daleo

Friday, July 18, 2025 at 03:10 PM ET

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Jack Daleo

The experimental X-59 features a thin nose that spans about one-third of its nearly 100-foot length, designed to break up shock waves. [Courtesy: NASA/Carla Thomas]

Key Takeaways:

NASA's X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft has begun low-speed taxi tests, marking its first movement under its own power and a crucial final step before its maiden flight later this year.
The X-59's primary goal is to reduce sonic booms to a "gentle thump," aiming to provide data that could lead to the lifting of the 1973 FAA ban on commercial supersonic flight over land.
Its unique design features, including a long, tapered nose and a cockpit without a forward-facing window (relying on an external vision system), are engineered to disperse shockwaves and mitigate noise.

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For the first time, NASA’s quiet supersonic X-59 is moving under its own power.

The experimental aircraft has begun a series of low-speed taxi tests at contractor Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California, the space agency said Thursday. First flight was initially scheduled for 2023 before being pushed to 2024 and now later this year. But taxi tests are the final step before it is cleared for takeoff.