Science & Technology

NASA's futuristic 'Son of Concorde' reaches 713mph in test flight

By T.K. Randall
June 15, 2026

Image: NASA's X-59
Credit: Steve Freeman / (PD) NASA Known as the X-59 Low Boom Flight Demonstration aircraft, the plane was revealed at an event at Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works facilities in California back in 2024 after years of speculation.

Measuring 100ft long, capable of speeds of around 1,000 miles per hour and costing $247.5 million, the X-59 has been designed to reduce the typically deafening sonic boom to a mere 'sonic thud'.

It accomplishes this thanks to its unique shape which helps to break up the sound waves typically produced when an aircraft exceeds the speed of sound. Around one-third of the plane's entire body is comprised of a long, slender nose while its windscreen has been replaced with a series of cameras enabling the pilot to see both in front and below.

Powered by a GE Aviation F414-GE-100 jet engine, the X-59 underwent its first test flight last week, reaching a speed of 713mph (Mach 1.1) and an altitude of 43,400ft.

Future flights will aim to fly above population centers to gauge the public's reaction to its dampened booms.

The International Civil Aviation Organization's Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP) will ultimately use this data to produce new noise regulations for supersonic flights.

Source: Metro.co.uk

Tags: X-59