X-59 QueSST Tail Milestone Reached

engineering careers  X-59 QueSST Tail Milestone Reached

The supersonic future of aviation is coming closer to reality as the Lockheed Martin X-59 QueSST (“Quiet SuperSonic Technology”) reaches a significant milestone.

The experimental aircraft, developed in partnership with NASA, has installed its tail assembly. The X-59 aims to revolutionise the aviation industry by making supersonic travel over land viable, thanks to its groundbreaking technology that reduces loud, disruptive sonic booms to barely-audible sonic thumps.

Milestone Achieved: The X-59 QueSST’s Tail Installation

The installation of the X-59’s lower empennage, or tail assembly, signifies an important milestone for the project, bringing the aircraft one step closer to its first flight. This crucial component is vital to the aircraft’s stability and control during supersonic flight. This phase’s successful completion highlights the progress in constructing the X-59, which aims to redefine the future of supersonic travel.

NASA’s Quesst mission has two primary objectives. The first goal is to design and build the X-59 research aircraft, focusing on significantly reducing the loudness of sonic booms. The second objective involves flying the X-59 over various U.S. communities to gather data on human responses to the sound generated during supersonic flight. This data will then be submitted to U.S. and international regulators, potentially leading to changes in rules that currently ban supersonic flight over land.

The successful completion of these goals will open the door to an entirely new global market for aircraft manufacturers, enabling passengers to travel anywhere in the world in half the time it takes today.

Designing for Quiet Supersonic Flight: The X-59 QueSST

The X-59 is a single-pilot aircraft, measuring 99.7 feet in length and 29.5 feet in width. Powered by a General Electric F414 engine, it will cruise at Mach 1.42 (1,510 km/h; 937 mph) at 55,000 ft (16,800 m).

The aircraft’s design, including a long, narrow airframe and canards, keeps shock waves from coalescing, resulting in a ground noise of around 60 dB(A) – about 1/1000 as loud as current supersonic aircraft.

The X-59 features a top-mounted engine intake to minimise the sonic boom further. However, inlet flow distortion due to vortices remains a concern. The aircraft’s flush cockpit and long, pointed nose cone obstruct forward vision, necessitating an enhanced flight vision system (EVS) consisting of a forward 4K camera with a 33° by 19° angle of view.

Bringing the X-59 QueSST to Life: Milestones and Progress

The journey started in February 2016 when Lockheed Martin won a preliminary contract to design the X-59.

Since then, the project has reached several milestones, including wind tunnel testing of scale models, a successful critical design review, and starting the assembly process.

In December 2020, the construction of the X-59 reached the halfway point, with the first flight initially scheduled for 2022.

Following the progress made in 2020, the next steps for the X-59 included a series of tests and assembly processes to ensure the aircraft’s readiness for supersonic flights.

In the first phase, engineers at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility continued working on the aircraft’s final assembly, wiring, and system checkouts. The team aimed to completion of the wing assembly in 2020, with integrated ground testing, engine runs, and taxi tests to follow. These tests were essential for validating the X-59’s acoustic signature and ensuring its innovative design would deliver the desired quiet sonic thump.

From 2021 onwards, NASA focused on the aircraft’s flight-clearance testing at the Armstrong Flight Research Center. This phase involved the validation of the X-59’s acoustics using air-to-air Schlieren imaging, a technique that would help confirm the shockwave pattern produced by the aircraft.

From 2023 to 2025, NASA will carry out community-response flight tests. The community response data gathered during these tests will be crucial for evaluating the potential impact on communities and informing regulators, potentially paving the way for commercial supersonic travel over land.

The results of the community overflights will be submitted to the ICAO and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 2027, allowing for a decision on revising the rules for commercial supersonic travel over land in 2028.

This critical milestone has the potential to revolutionise the aviation industry by enabling passengers to travel anywhere in the world in half the time it takes today.

TLDR
  • The Lockheed Martin X-59 QueSST aims to revolutionize the aviation industry by making supersonic travel over land viable.
  • The experimental aircraft has installed its tail assembly, bringing it one step closer to its first flight.
  • The X-59’s groundbreaking technology reduces loud, disruptive sonic booms to barely-audible sonic thumps.
  • The X-59’s design keeps shock waves from coalescing, resulting in a ground noise of around 60 dB(A) – about 1/1000 as loud as current supersonic aircraft.
  • NASA’s Quesst mission has two primary objectives: designing and building the X-59 research aircraft, and flying the X-59 over various U.S. communities to gather data on human responses to the sound generated during supersonic flight.
  • The successful completion of these goals could potentially lead to changes in rules that currently ban supersonic flight over land.
  • The X-59’s first flight was initially scheduled for 2022, with community-response flight tests taking place from 2023 to 2025 and a decision on revising the rules for commercial supersonic travel over land expected in 2028.
  • If successful, this critical milestone could enable passengers to travel anywhere in the world in half the time it takes today.