Lockheed Martin Skunk Works
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NASA
NASA Invites Media to Learn About Upcoming X-59 Test Flights
Editor’s note: This advisory was updated on March 18, 2026, to reflect the new date for the media teleconference and update the participant list. NASA will hold a media teleconference at 5:30 p.m. EDT on Friday, March 20 to highlight plans for its X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft’s upcoming flight tests. The teleconference is set to take place after the X-59…
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Press Releases
Lockheed Martin Vectis™: Best in CCA Class Survivability
Lockheed Martin Skunk Works® (NYSE: LMT) introduces Vectis, a Group 5 survivable and lethal collaborative combat aircraft (CCA) to advance unparalleled air dominance for American and allied militaries. This system embodies the company’s pedigree in fighter aircraft, autonomous systems and open mission architectures. As the future of air power takes shape, Skunk Works is charting a critical path with Vectis to…
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NASA
NASA’s X-59 at Sunrise
NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft sits on the ramp at sunrise before ground tests at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California, on July 18, 2025. Following completion of low-speed taxi tests in July 2025 in Palmdale, California, medium- and high-speed taxi tests mark the final steps before the aircraft takes to the skies for the first time. The X-59 is the…
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NASA
NASA Runs X-59 Engine with Maximum Afterburner for First Time
NASA completed the first maximum afterburner engine run test on its X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft on Dec. 12. The ground test, conducted at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California, marks a significant milestone as the X-59 team progresses toward flight. An afterburner is a component of some jet engines that generates additional thrust. Running the engine, an…
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NASA
NASA X-59 Unveiled During Rollout Ceremony
A climactic curtain drop reveals the newly painted red, white, and blue X-59 aircraft during its rollout ceremony on Jan. 12, 2024, at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California – a major milestone before its first flight. A long-standing aviation tradition, rollout ceremonies celebrate years of technical achievements. In the case of the X-59, not only does it celebrate groundbreaking technical work, but it honors…
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NASA
Skunk Works® Rolls Out X-59, NASA’s Newest X-Plane
Lockheed Martin Skunk Works® (NYSE: LMT) rolled out the X-59, a unique experimental aircraft designed to quiet the sonic boom, at a ceremony in Palmdale, California. The ceremony marked a significant milestone in Lockheed Martin’s and NASA’s decades-long journey to solve one of the most persistent challenges of supersonic flight – the sonic boom. Lockheed Martin Skunk Works® rolled out the X-59,…
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NASA
NASA Targets 2024 for First Flight of X-59 Experimental Aircraft
NASA’s Quesst mission has adjusted the scheduled first flight of its X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft to 2024. A one-of-a-kind experimental aircraft, the X-59 has required complex engineering from NASA researchers working with prime contractor Lockheed Martin Skunk Works. In addition to the aircraft’s design, the X-59 also combines new technology with systems and components from multiple, established aircraft, such as…
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