NASA’s X-59 flew faster than the speed of sound for the first time on 5 June 2026, completing an 81-minute test flight from Edwards Air Force Base in California. The experimental aircraft reached about Mach 1.1, or roughly 713 mph, in a sortie that NASA said was the first supersonic flight in the X-59 programme.
The flight was conducted by test pilot Jim ‘Clue’ Less and the X-59 team as part of NASA’s Quesst supersonic research programme. NASA said the aircraft had previously flown subsonically, and that the latest mission evaluated flying qualities at both subsonic and supersonic speeds.
The agency said the next flight in mission conditions is expected in the coming days, with a target of around Mach 1.4 at approximately 55,000 feet. NASA’s broader objective is to demonstrate quiet supersonic capabilities and gather data that could inform future supersonic aircraft development and regulatory work on overland operations.