NASA pilot Mike Lippert flies X-59 to Mach 1.4 over the Mojave on his first flight

NASA test pilot Mike Lippert flew the agency’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft for the first time on Oct. 21, taking off from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards and landing one hour later, NASA said.

During the flight Lippert reached a maximum speed of Mach 1.4 and an altitude of 55,000 feet, according to NASA Armstrong. He performed maneuvers to assess the aircraft’s handling while the team evaluated its systems.

“After completing our high-altitude test points, there was a brief period where we descended and decelerated, where I was able to look outside and recognize that I was flying supersonic in an X-plane over the high deserts of the Mojave,” Lippert said. “It was a special moment for sure.”

The flight was Lippert’s first in an X-plane in more than 21 years of flying high-performance aircraft, including 11 years as a test pilot, NASA said. He completed his first X-59 engine run in August and trained in the simulator alongside fellow NASA test pilots Nils Larson and Jim “Clue” Less.

The flight came after scheduled maintenance and a review of the X-59’s systems that followed the aircraft’s busiest week of testing to date. In September, the jet completed six flights in three days.

The X-59, the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, has flown numerous times since its first flight in 2025 and made its first supersonic flight on June 5, 2026, NASA said.

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