Washington: One day we may all be able to travel through the skies in supersonic flights that only X-1 pilots can today. Commercial supersonic aircraft may soon become a reality with NASA’s X59 Quest (Quiet SuperSonic Technology) project.
Lockheed Martin, which designed the X-59 project, is targeting the first test flight of the aircraft by 2023.
The first supersonic flight was a huge achievement. Now look how far we have come. We are now working towards the culmination of those achievements. said Kathryn Baum, an aeronautical engineer at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in California.
NASA’s Quest project aims to make the X-59 a supersonic supersonic aircraft. Supersonic aircraft were banned in 1973 because of the noise.
The X-59 flight was tested over various populated areas. If they heard any noise they would seek people’s response regarding it. NASA said it will forward this response to authorities and make efforts to lift the ban.
If the ban is lifted. It will be another milestone in history. It will usher in a new era of aviation. Air travelers can travel in supersonic aircraft. NASA said.
It was 75 years ago that the first supersonic flight flew over the California desert. It was on October 14, 1947. The newly formed X-1 team of the then National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) and the Air Force achieved a feat considered unattainable at the time, surpassing the speed of sound. The X-59 Quest mission is an attempt to break the speed limit again.