NASA's 'quiet' supersonic jet completes first flight in potential... breakthrough for commercial air travel | Morgan Phillips, Fox News X-59 aircraft designed to reduce sonic boom to a 'thump' could revolutionize commercial aviation A new "quiet" supersonic X-59 jet designed to revolutionize air travel successfully completed its first test flight, Lockheed Martin announced this week. The sleek, needle-point aircraft built for NASA is designed to break the sound barrier while reducing the sonic boom to a "thump," according to the aerospace contractor. The aircraft aims to overcome one of the major hurdles to supersonic travel, which is noise restrictions over land. The plane took off from Palmdale, Calif., at Skunk Works' facility at U.S. Air Force Plant 42, accompanied by a NASA chase plane. It landed safely about an hour later at NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center. The plane’s unique shape is designed to greatly lower the volume of the sonic boom typically produced when a plane breaks the sound barrier. The long, pointed nose prevents adequate forward-facing visibility, so the pilot flies relying on a monitor in the cockpit. NASA has paid Lockheed over $500 million since 2018 to develop the plane. The plane, which measures just under 100 feet nose to tail, flew at subsonic speeds on its first flight, around 230 mph and reached 12,000 feet. The plane is built to eventually reach a cruising speed of 925 mph, or Mach 1.4, and fly at an altitude of 55,000 feet. "This aircraft is a testament to the innovation and expertise of our joint team, and we are proud to be at the forefront of quiet supersonic technology development," OJ Sanchez, vice president and general manager of Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, said in a statement. "X-59 is a symbol of American ingenuity. The American spirit knows no bounds. It's part of our DNA – the desire to go farther, faster, and even quieter than anyone has ever gone before. This work sustains America's place as the leader in aviation and has the potential to change the way the public flies," said Sean Duffy, acting NASA administrator. The supersonic Concorde aircraft, developed by France and the U.K., began transatlantic flights in 1976, reached max speeds of over 1,300 mph and flew passengers from New York to London in just 3.5 hours. But high operating costs meant ticket costs were about four times higher than a standard first-class ticket, and the supersonic boom meant the plane could only fly at such high speeds over water. A crash in 2000 deeply affected public confidence in the plane, and it was retired in 2003. NASA plans to fly the X-59 over several U.S. cities in the coming years, gathering public feedback that could help regulators update decades-old bans on supersonic flight over land. If successful, the data could open the door for a new generation of commercial jets capable of cutting cross-country flight times in half — bringing back supersonic travel for the first time in more than two decades, but this time with far less noise.show more

🇺🇸 Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works and NASA are pushing... the X-59 closer to its first supersonic flight. The sleek experimental jet is hitting new speeds and altitudes in latest tests, all while designed to produce a much quieter sonic boom. The American’s goal is to finally make overland supersonic travel possible without the deafening boom that’s kept it banned for decades.show more

🚨 NASA’S X-59 JUST BROKE THE SOUND BARRIER AND... IT DID IT QUIETLY. For decades, supersonic flight over land has been banned in most countries because of the loud sonic boom it creates. NASA’s experimental X-59 is trying to change that. The aircraft, developed with Lockheed Martin, is shaped in a very specific way to reshape the shockwaves that form during supersonic flight. Instead of a loud, window-rattling boom, it’s designed to produce a much softer “thump” that reaches the ground. In its first supersonic flight, the X-59 reached Mach 1.1 while testing this quiet sonic boom technology. Why this matters: • If successful, it could reopen the possibility of supersonic passenger flights over populated areas • Current supersonic jets (like the retired Concorde) were too loud for overland routes • The X-59 doesn’t carry passengers — it’s a flying testbed for the technology • Quieter supersonic flight could dramatically cut long-distance travel times in the future The deeper implication: This isn’t just about going faster. It’s about removing one of the biggest barriers that has kept supersonic travel from becoming practical for regular people. For over 50 years, the sonic boom has been the main reason we’ve been stuck flying at subsonic speeds on most routes. If NASA and its partners can prove that a shaped aircraft can turn a loud boom into a gentle thump, it could fundamentally change how we think about long-distance air travel in the coming decades. We may be watching the return of supersonic flight just much quieter this time. Do you think quiet supersonic passenger planes will become a reality in your lifetime? Follow for more frontier aerospace and aviation technology.show more

A Southwest Airlines flight from Burbank, California, safely landed... in Las Vegas after performing an emergency maneuver to avoid colliding with another aircraft on Friday. Minutes after Southwest flight 1496 took off from Burbank, it rapidly descended 475 feet to avoid hitting another plane — dropping from 14,100 feet to 13,625 feet, according to flight tracking data and passenger accounts. The other aircraft was identified as a Hawk Hunter with the N-number "N335AX," which was at approximately 14,653 feet when the Southwest flight had to make its emergency descent. Southwest airlines said in a statement, "The Crew of Southwest Flight 1496 responded to two onboard traffic alerts Friday afternoon while climbing out of Burbank, Cal., requiring them to climb and descend to comply with the alerts. The flight continued to Las Vegas, where it landed uneventfully. Southwest is engaged with the Federal Aviation Administration to further understand the circumstances. No injuries were immediately reported by Customers, but two Flight Attendants are being treated for injuries. We appreciate the professionalism of our Flight Crew and Flight Attendants in responding to this event. Nothing is more important to Southwest than the Safety of our Customers and Employees."show more

The making of the Airbus A380 - building the... world's largest passenger aircraft The Airbus A380 was designed to move more passengers farther and quieter than any aircraft before it. Its development brought together engineering teams from across Europe to create a true aviation giant. Major sections of the A380 are manufactured in different countries. The wings are built in the United Kingdom, the fuselage sections in Germany and France, the cockpit and nose in France, and the horizontal tail plane in Spain. These massive components are transported by Beluga aircraft, ships, and special road convoys to the final assembly line in Toulouse, France ملم The A380 uses advanced aluminum alloys and composite materials to handle extreme structural loads while keeping weight under control. Its wings are the largest ever fitted to a passenger aircraft, designed to flex several meters upward in flight without damage. Inside, the aircraft features a full-length double-deck cabin, advanced fly-by-wire systems, and one of the most complex electrical and hydraulic architectures ever installed on a civil airliner After assembly, each A380 undergoes extensive ground tests, system checks, and flight testing to certify performance, safety, and reliability before entering airline serviceshow more

🚨🇨🇳CHINA TESTS NEW "SPACE CAPABLE" FIGHTER JET Forget drones... over New Jersey; China is upping the stakes with the maiden flight of its latest jet, codenamed the Baidi or White Emperor. The 6th generation jet is designed to be an "integrated space-air fighter" that can fly at supersonic speeds and operate in space. It has a tailless design and diamond-shaped wings and is equipped with advanced avionics and stealth features. The Baidi also has a large internal weapons bay to carry more air-to-ground munitions without compromising stealth. Source: Clash Reportshow more

Raw thrust, pure legacy. The General Electric J79 is... a military turbojet built for speed, power, and high-altitude performance. Air is compressed, mixed with fuel, and ignited to produce high-energy exhaust gases that drive the turbine and exit at extreme velocity, generating thrust. With an afterburner system, additional fuel is injected into the exhaust stream, delivering a massive boost in thrust when needed. Designed to power legendary aircraft like the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter, it became known for its high thrust-to-weight ratio and distinctive performance in supersonic flight. Its robust design and ability to operate under extreme conditions made it a cornerstone of early jet combat technology. Built for speed. Proven in the skies.show more

On December 20, 1989, Lockheed Skunk Works head Ben... Rich arranged a final farewell flight of the SR-71 Blackbird (#972) over the Burbank and Palmdale facilities as a tribute to employees and the legendary designer Kelly Johnson. Rich secretly arranged for Johnson to watch the flyby from a limousine. The flyby was designed as a touching, morale-boosting salute for the Lockheed Advanced Development Projects team as Congress debated the impending retirement of the iconic spy plane. Piloted by Lt. Col. Ed Yielding and Tom Fuhrman, the aircraft flew from Beale Air Force Base to execute low-level passes over the Skunk Works headquarters in Burbank and Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, giving the workforce a chance to see the magnificent machine roar overhead. Ben Rich famously took Johnson—who was in declining health at the time—in a chauffeur-driven limousine from the hospital so he could witness his creation one last time. As the SR-71 thundered in, Johnson looked up, and Rich noted a single tear of joy and happiness running down the aviation pioneer’s cheek. Kelly Johnson died almost one year later December 21, 1991 he said that he did not believe anyone would ever break the SR 71‘s record. So far no one has..#blackbirdshow more

Thousands of Airbus A320 airliners around the world might... require a software update, potentially causing flight delays or cancellations during the busy Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Airbus identified an apparent issue relating to "intense solar radiation," which "may corrupt data critical to the functioning of flight controls" and recommended an emergency software update to the A320 family of aircraft – a common passenger plane for U.S. carriers. This emergency update stems from an incident Oct. 30 when a JetBlue flight traveling from Cancun, Mexico, to Newark, New Jersey, experienced an issue with its flight controls. The plane dropped about 100 feet in seven seconds, according to preliminary flight data from Flightradar24, and was diverted to Tampa, Florida.show more

In January, we delivered our second aircraft to DoD... customers at Edwards Air Force Base. This historic lakebed is where Chuck Yeager first broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1, and where the Enterprise space shuttle prototype completed a series of approach and landing flight trials. It's an honor for us to conduct testing of our electric air taxi on this hallowed ground.show more

Southwest Airlines began Friday flying its first aircraft with... a secondary barrier to the flight deck designed to prevent intrusions. The Boeing 737 MAX 8 which was delivered in recent days - took off Friday afternoon from Phoenix to Denver, the airline said. Secondary barriers -- long sought after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks that exposed the risks of inadequate flight detect protection -- are crucial to aviation safety, pilots unions have argued. The flight is a milestone that marks the beginning of the roll out of the safety feature across the new U.S. commercial airline fleet in the coming years. Boeing and Airbus told media they have begun delivering airplanes with the barriers under the Federal Aviation Administration regulation announced in 2023 that took effect on Monday.show more

Air India Statement Air India welcomes back stranded passengers... from Dubai on flight AI916D that landed at 1058 hrs IST at Delhi Airport. The aircraft, VT-EDC, ferried a total of 149 passengers. This is the first flight operated by an Indian carrier for the homecoming of passengers amid the ongoing situation in the Middle East. Earlier this morning, 143 cockpit and cabin crew members of Air India and Air India Express who were stranded in Dubai safely arrived back in Delhi on flight AI918D. Our Operations Control Centre and supporting teams have been working around the clock to facilitate these flights in extraordinary circumstances, ensuring seamless coordination throughout. We express our sincere gratitude to the Government of India, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and the local authorities in Dubai for their continued cooperation in enabling these vital operations. We remain deeply committed to the safety and wellbeing of our passengers and crew, which continues to be our highest priority. We will continue to monitor the situation, and we are in close contact with Dubai Airports and other relevant authorities to operate more flights at the earliest opportunity, as and when permissible.show more

Update on LAT Aerospace Our first uSTOL technology demonstrator... is ready. Today, we have a fully-electric, fixed-wing UAV, built from scratch and almost ready for flight. To make this possible in just a few months, we built our entire flight lab from scratch. Every bench, every tool, every fixture designed to push the aircraft closer to flight every single day. This aircraft is designed to takeoff in 40 meters (thanks to a massive CL of 5 which is more than 2x of what you see on most aircraft). Endurance of 60 minutes. With a range of being able to cruise autonomously from Mumbai to Pune. Ground rolls done. As I type this, we are pushing hard to get the bird in the air. Hopefully it doesn't blow up. Either way, I promise videos of our attempt sometime over the next few weeks. We have learnt so much over the last few months, and I am sure that there are a lot of hard learnings yet in store for us. Our research on hybrid-electric propulsion is already in full swing, and we’ve also started building a team to begin development on our own gas turbine engines. This is one of the hardest engineering challenges possible. Our team is relentlessly at it to make this a reality before the turn of this decade. To read more about LAT Aerospace, please visit -- PS: LAT is not a part of Eternalshow more

✈️ 🇷🇸 Novak Djokovic took an Air Serbia flight... from New York to Belgrade, and the airline decided to surprise him As he was boarding the plane, he took a photo with the cabin crew working on that flight, and once he was inside, a big surprise awaited him. All over the plane, there were pillows with the number ‘24,’ which is the number of Grand Slam titles Novak Djokovic has won so far in his career. The Serbian airline made a great effort to host the best athlete on the planet, and he reciprocated with gratitude and a big smile. (Tanjug)show more

Meanwhile, Putin arrived at an aircraft plant in Irkutsk... and is delighted with the long-suffering "Russian-made" MS-21 airliner. They showed him the supposed production of the first 18 aircraft, but it is just dust in the eyes of the dictator. The MS-21 is more than 10 years behind schedule. Development costs have ballooned from 150 billion to over 1 trillion rubles, and the unit cost has roughly tripled. Due to sanctions, the plane gained 5–6 tons in weight, lost half its range, was shortened, and now carries almost 30% fewer passengers. By mid-2026, only a third of the required test flights with Russian components had been completed.show more

Poland Showcases Its Pilot's First Flight on an F-35... Fighter Jet Poland’s Ministry of Defense has unveiled the first flight of a Polish pilot on the F-35 Hussarz fighter jet. The aircraft took off from Fort Smith Air Base in Arkansas, where Polish pilots undergo training, according to the Polish Ministry of Defense. "The first flight of a Polish pilot on the F-35 Husarz. This historic moment marks a new chapter in the modernization of the Air Force," the statement read. The F-35 Lightning II was nicknamed "Hussarz" as a tribute to the winged hussars of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, named for their distinctive feathered attire. The F-35 Lightning II is a multirole aircraft, capable of engaging enemy planes (as a fighter jet), striking ground and naval targets (as a bomber), conducting reconnaissance missions, and performing electronic warfare operations.show more

🔴 Today’s strike in Sana’a was the result of... precise intelligence work, targeting a highly specific and unusual asset: A seemingly “civilian” Yemenia Airways empty passenger plane. This aircraft, under the guise of a commercial flight, had been covertly used by the Houthis for trips between Sana’a and Tehran, moving operatives for training in missile production and weapons development. Israeli intelligence had been tracking this plane recently, gradually closing the intelligence gap until there was no longer any doubt about its real function. Normally, the plane wasn’t docking in Yemen but in Jordan, making it harder to target. But today, in a rare move, it landed and remained at the Sana’a airport, creating a fleeting but valuable opportunity. Within 30 minutes of its landing, the window was exploited. Once confirmation came in that the aircraft had taken off from Jordan en route to Yemen, Israel scrambled several fighter jets, supported by additional aircraft types, to execute a clean, surgical strike while the plane was still on the ground. A textbook example of actionable intelligence turning into operational success - both the intelligence cycle and the strike itself are worth studying closely.show more

Southwest Airlines has confirmed that one of its flights... was forced to take evasive action to avoid colliding with another flight at Nashville International Airport over the weekend. Southwest reports that while approaching BNA amid gusty wind conditions, pilots of Southwest Flight 507 executed a precautionary go-around. During that action, the pilots used instructions from air traffic control and an onboard traffic alert to avoid conflicting with Southwest Flight 1152, which was departing from another runway. Flight 507 was able to land after the go-around and Flight 1152 continued to its destination in Knoxville. “We are engaged with the FAA as part of the investigation. Southwest appreciates the professionalism of its Pilots and Flight Crews in responding to the event. Nothing is more important to Southwest than the Safety of our Customers and Employees,” the airline said in a statement. Video: Flightradar24show more

JUST IN: Three survivors of the Delta plane crash... in Toronto are in critical condition, one being a child. 76 people were on board the plane that crashed at Toronto's Pearson Airport, with new reports claiming at least 18 people were injured. One man in his 60s and a woman in her 40s sustained critical injuries, according to ABC News. They were rushed to separate hospitals. Another passenger, presumably a child, was reportedly transported to Toronto’s SickKids hospital. "There’s still a lot of uncertainty as to what is going on, but as of right now, there’s no arrivals or departures coming or going," CTV News reported. It's unclear how exactly the plane flipped over, but wind speeds were reportedly 40 mph on the ground and stronger in the air.show more