{"id":1165,"date":"2017-04-18T20:33:48","date_gmt":"2017-04-18T17:33:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.xairforces.com\/?p=1165"},"modified":"2025-12-15T22:13:30","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T19:13:30","slug":"flight-lab-the-bizarre-beautiful-new-fliers-of-nasas-famed-x-plane-program","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.xairforces.com\/?p=1165","title":{"rendered":"Flight Lab: The Bizarre, Beautiful New Fliers of NASA\u2019s Famed X-Plane Program"},"content":{"rendered":"

TUCKED AWAY IN <\/span>the Mojave desert lies the Armstrong Flight Research Center, where NASA engineers imagine, design, and test the future of flight in aircraft that carry the designation \u201cX.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

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With 14 electric motors turning propellers and all of them integrated into a uniquely-designed wing, the X-57 nicknamed ‘Maxwell’ will test new quieter and greener aircraft. (NASA)<\/p><\/div>\n

That single letter has since the dawn of the jet age meant\u00a0\u201cleading edge\u201d and appeared on some truly historic planes. In 1947, the\u00a0X-1\u00a0became the first aircraft to break the sound barrier in level flight. Just four year later, the X-5 proved that moving, swept wings work. The X-24 program of the 1960s and \u201970s led to the development of the \u201clifting body\u201d design that brought the space shuttle back to Earth.<\/p>\n

After 70 years, NASA and the US Air Force still build X planes in pursuit of breakthroughs. The latest is the X-57, an all-electric aircraft with\u00a014 propellers. Crazy as it looks (and sounds), NASA engineers say the\u00a0narrow wings will reduce drag and increase efficiency. But first, they must\u00a0figure out how it will handle, and how pilots will control it.<\/p>\n

We went into the California lab where engineers and other experts run the simulations needed to do that. We even got a peek\u00a0at the leading contender for the next X designation\u2014a 21st century take on supersonic flight that could revive the age of Concorde. Take a look in the video above.<\/p>\n