The X-59 team at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California, load the lower empennage - the tail section - into place. The surfaces used to control the tilt of the airplane are called stabilators and are connected to the lower empennage. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which could help enable commercial supersonic air travel over land.
Photographer Garry Tice
Date January 27, 2023
Clearance CheckLower EmpennageTest fitWith Enginelower empennage empennage stabilators tail X-59 Quesst Quiet Supersonic Technology Low Boom Flight Demonstrator X-plane Low-Boom X-59 assembly LBFD Lockheed Martin Skunk Works ARMD Supersonic Engine engine inlet Aeronautics GE F414 engine General Electric Quest inlet LaRC ARC AFRC GRC