NASA Armstrong Celebrates 80 Years of Pioneering Flight Research

On September 30, 1946, five National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) engineers arrived at Muroc Army Airfield in California’s high desert with an ambitious goal: achieving the first supersonic flight. In less than two years, NACA flew the X-1 faster than the speed of sound, creating a defining milestone in aviation history.

From the X-1 to NASA’s X-59

Eighty years later, the former NACA outpost is now NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. The center continues to shape the future of aviation, flying the supersonic X-plane X-59 in the same skies to demonstrate that supersonic flight does not require a traditional sonic boom.

Throughout its 80-year history, NASA Armstrong has supported landmark missions, from Space Shuttle landings to SR-71 flights. The center has also helped advance science, aeronautics, and space research.

Today, this Southern California NASA facility is leading the next era of aeronautics and human spaceflight by advancing technologies that could define the future of flight.

How NASA Armstrong Is Shaping the Future of Flight

• NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman recently named Mr. Armstrong to the agency’s Flight Test and Aircraft Operations Center of Excellence, recognizing the center’s unparalleled rigor in executing unique missions that only NASA can fly.
• To support NASA’s Artemis mission and return to the Moon, Armstrong uses research aircraft such as a 737 to test astronaut suits, a G-III to collect Artemis II heat shield data, and an F/A-18 to test the autopilot for the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.
• The X-59, a centerpiece of NASA’s aeronautics program, is undergoing rigorous testing and a series of flights at Armstrong Base in preparation for an upcoming silent supersonic demonstration over American skies.
• From early supersonic flight research to digital fly-by-wire technology, NASA Armstrong continues to collaborate with government agencies, industry, and academia to transform commercial and military aviation and make flight safer, more autonomous, and more efficient.
• The center also supports global science by flying aircraft such as the ER-2, C-20A, and Gulfstream G-III/IV/V to collect critical data on wildfires, glacier melt, pollution, minerals, and other environmental concerns.

The People Behind NASA’s Milestone Missions

Behind these achievements are engineers, pilots, technicians, and mission support teams who continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in aviation, spaceflight, and scientific research.

Learn more about NASA Armstrong below.

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Dede Dinias / Teresa Whiting
Armstrong Flight Research Center, Edwards, California
661-276-3449
[email protected] / [email protected]