NASA expects its crewed X-70 Fractal to make its first flight under the agency within two years, with room for 2,000 pounds of swappable experiments. But who makes it? The agency hasn’t said.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman unveiled the crewed X-70 Fractal experimental aircraft Nov. 4 at Kennedy Space Center, saying the agency expects its first NASA flight within two years.
Isaacman made the announcement at the UP.Summit at the NASA center in Florida. NASA describes the aircraft as a high-performance, highly adaptable research platform for advanced flight-control and maneuverability experiments, but those are announced capabilities, not demonstrated results.
Isaacman said in a NASA announcement: “We expect her first flight under the NASA banner within the next two years, and X-70 is just one part of this new beginning for aeronautics.”
That timeline is an expectation, not a scheduled date. An exact flight date had not been confirmed as of Nov. 6. It also had not been independently confirmed whether the flight would be the airframe’s first ever or only its first under NASA.
How the X-70 Fractal would work
NASA said the aircraft would pair rapidly reconfigurable flight controls with interchangeable experimental payloads. The agency said the controls would let it explore aircraft maneuverability in ways not previously demonstrated in crewed flight.
The modular arrangement is intended to let research teams move rapidly between experiments, NASA said. The agency gave no figure for how long a swap would take.
“Its modular design and ability to rapidly swap internal and external payloads will keep our teams flying, learning, and moving quickly from one experiment to the next,” Isaacman said.
Laurie Grindle, director of the Aeronautics Division within NASA’s Research and Technology Mission Directorate, placed the aircraft in a longer agency tradition.
“For decades, NASA Aeronautics has used X-planes to develop technologies that advance aviation,” Grindle said.
NASA X-70 Fractal design figures
NASA’s release listed the aircraft’s design figures and said those capabilities “will enable NASA to conduct demanding flight research.”
According to NASA, the X-70 has a takeoff weight of 10,000 pounds and is designed to cruise at Mach 0.75 and reach altitudes of up to 45,000 feet. Its operational range would exceed about 1,500 nautical miles (1,726 miles), the agency said.
The aircraft can carry up to 2,000 pounds of experimental payloads in internal and external locations, the agency said.
Aviation Week’s Steve Trimble, reporting from Kennedy Space Center, described the program as a subsonic testbed and reported matching operating figures, including the 1,500-nautical-mile range.
A FlightGlobal account gave a different range, exceeding 1,726 nautical miles. NASA’s release does not support that figure, which applies a different unit to the same number.
All the figures describe the disclosed design, not independently flight-tested performance. The published information does not say whether those limits apply at the same time.
What remains unknown
NASA’s release names no contractor, and Aviation Week reported Nov. 5 that further details, including the contractor, were not disclosed. The report also quoted Isaacman telling the summit, “I promise you, there will be more,” and said another X-plane announcement was expected there Nov. 6.
As of Nov. 6, the aircraft’s manufacturer, engine, dimensions, crew seating, detailed control mechanisms, budget, contract value, procurement route, build status and prior flight history had not been independently confirmed. The same was true of its initial test payloads, test base and airworthiness milestones.
NASA labeled the illustration accompanying its announcement as a generated image, so it is not a photograph of an actual aircraft.
FlightGlobal reported that NASA did not respond to its request for comment. That account has not been independently confirmed.
No on-record assessment from an independent expert could be located as of Nov. 6. Nor could any statement from a regulator, union or customer.
X-59 milestones earlier this year
The X-70 announcement came five months after the X-59, a quiet-supersonic research aircraft in NASA’s Quesst mission, first flew supersonically.
NASA said test pilot Jim Less flew that June 5 mission, taking off and landing at Edwards Air Force Base, California. On June 12, NASA reported, the X-59 reached Mach 1.4 and 55,000 feet.
NASA said in an Oct. 2 blog post that the X-59 later reached a top speed of Mach 1.53. Aviation International News reported Oct. 30 that flights to expand its speed and altitude limits would continue as the team began moving toward acoustic validation, the next test phase.
NASA’s June 5 account acknowledged collaboration with Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, which FlightGlobal identified as the X-59’s developer.
FlightGlobal also reported a banner reading “X-59 is just the start,” wording that has not been independently confirmed.
Key Takeaways
- NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman unveiled the crewed X-70 Fractal on Nov. 4 at the UP.Summit at Kennedy Space Center.
- NASA expects the aircraft’s first flight under the agency within two years; no exact date had been confirmed as of Nov. 6.
- The aircraft is meant for flight-control and maneuverability research, with swappable internal and external payloads.
- Announced design figures include a 10,000-pound takeoff weight, Mach 0.75 cruise speed and range exceeding about 1,500 nautical miles.
- NASA’s release names no contractor.