NASA Unveils X-70 Fractal Experimental Aircraft: Crewed Flight-Test Platform to Fly Within Two Years
NASA unveiled its newest experimental aircraft, the X-70 Fractal, on November 4 during the UP.Summit at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The crewed, high-performance research platform is designed to accelerate the development and testing of advanced aviation technologies.
The X-70 features advanced, rapidly reconfigurable flight-control technology that NASA says will allow it to explore aircraft maneuverability in ways never before demonstrated in crewed flight. The aircraft can accommodate up to 2,000 pounds of experimental payloads in internal and external locations, enabling a wide range of research and flight-testing opportunities.
According to NASA, the X-70 Fractal has a takeoff weight of 10,000 pounds and is designed to cruise at Mach 0.75, reach altitudes of up to 45,000 feet, and provide an operational range exceeding about 1,726 miles (1,500 nautical miles), enabling demanding flight research across a broad range of operating conditions.
"The X-70 Fractal gives NASA a crewed, high-performance platform to test advanced flight-control, maneuverability, and other cutting-edge technologies in real flight," said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. "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. 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."
"For decades, NASA Aeronautics has used X-planes to develop technologies that advance aviation," said Laurie Grindle, director of the Aeronautics Division within NASA's Research and Technology Mission Directorate. "It's exciting to bring on another X-plane to accelerate and drive aeronautics research."
The X-70 joins a storied legacy of experimental aircraft that have helped establish America's leadership in aviation, from the Bell X-1, which first broke the sound barrier in 1947, to the X-15 hypersonic research aircraft and today's X-59 quiet supersonic demonstrator. NASA said the X-70 will expand its capacity to conduct experimental flight research, accelerate the testing of emerging technologies, and advance the next generation of American aviation.
(Source: NASA)
Source: NASA
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：美国国家航空航天局（NASA）总部 Mary W. Jackson 大楼（Washington，联邦固定图库）。ajay_suresh 摄，CC BY 2.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: Mary W. Jackson Building, NASA Headquarters in Washington (federal fixed asset library). Photo by ajay_suresh, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
