@NASAArmstrong

The Armstrong Flight Research Center is NASA's primary center for atmospheric flight research & operations.

 Edwards, California
nasa.gov/centers/armstrong/home/index.html
Joined March 2009
  • Tweets9.1K
  • Following112
  • Followers515K
2.7KMedia
The X-59 has touched down at its new home! On Oct. 28, 2025, the X-59 completed its first flight, taking off from the @LockheedMartin Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California, and landing at @EdwardsAFB after a 67-minute flight. The quiet supersonic research aircraft then taxied to NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center, marking its transition from ground testing to flight operations.
NASA Aeronautics
@NASAaero19 Nov 2025
X-59 has officially completed its first flight ever! The @NASA X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft took to the skies for the first time Oct. 28, marking a historic moment for the field of aeronautics research. ✈️A culmination of all the right stuff: go.nasa.gov/3K3QsnC
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NASA test pilot Mike Lippert completed his first flight in the X-59, marking his first time flying an X-plane. After years flying high-performance aircraft and months preparing for the mission, Lippert completed high-altitude test points and handling evaluations to support the X-59 flight test campaign. "For as long as I can remember, I've dreamt of doing exactly what I got to do today." 🔗: go.nasa.gov/4BBBfjQ
NASA test pilot Mike Lippert sits in the cockpit of the X-59 with the canopy open and looks toward crew members on the ramp. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

ALT NASA test pilot Mike Lippert sits in the cockpit of the X-59 with the canopy open and looks toward crew members on the ramp. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

NASA test pilot Mike Lippert, wearing a tan flight suit and harness, inspects the X-59 as team members work nearby. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

ALT NASA test pilot Mike Lippert, wearing a tan flight suit and harness, inspects the X-59 as team members work nearby. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

NASA test pilot Mike Lippert, wearing a tan flight suit and harness, stands beside the X-59 after completing his first flight in the aircraft. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

ALT NASA test pilot Mike Lippert, wearing a tan flight suit and harness, stands beside the X-59 after completing his first flight in the aircraft. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

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NASA Armstrong retweeted
NASA Events
@NASA_Events4h
The aircraft lineup just keeps getting bigger. ✈️ MAX POWER, a new aerospace expo, is set for Nov. 7-8 @NASAKennedy — featuring flyovers and static displays, including NASA’s F-15, F-18, T-38, and ER-2 aircraft. Details on how to join us: nasa.gov/maxpower/
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NASA Armstrong retweeted
NASA Aeronautics
@NASAaeroOct 16
Talk about diving into your work! ✈️🔧 Keeping NASA’s X-59 flight-ready sometimes means going headfirst into its engine inlet. See how technicians use “duct diving” to inspect critical components of our quiet supersonic aircraft. go.nasa.gov/4dJiosH
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NASA Armstrong retweeted
NASA
@NASAOct 16
The aircraft lineup just keeps getting bigger. ✈️ MAX POWER, a new aerospace expo, is set for Nov. 7-8 @NASAKennedy — featuring flyovers and static displays, including NASA’s F-15, F-18, T-38, and ER-2 aircraft. Details on how to join us: nasa.gov/maxpower/
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NASA Armstrong retweeted
NASA Technology
@NASA_TechnologyOct 14
Replying to @NASA
@NASA selected 3 winning teams in its #TechLeapPrize Robotically Manipulated Payload Challenge to advance persistent infrastructure for in-space servicing, assembly, and manufacturing. go.nasa.gov/4dCBJf7 #FlightOpportunities #ISAM
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Somewhere on that beach is a future pilot, engineer or astronaut. That’s why we fly. An incredible weekend over Huntington Beach with our @NASA team at @PacificAirshow. America has big missions ahead, and we’re going to need the next generation ready to take them on.
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A great weekend inspiring the next generation of innovators!
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman
@NASAAdminOct 5
Thank you to our @NASA team and everyone at @PacificAirshow who made it possible. Hopefully a few kids went home thinking about their own future in aviation and space. We’re going to need them.
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NASA’s heading to the Pacific Airshow this weekend!✈️ NASA’s newly painted F-15 jet, celebrating America’s 250th, and an F/A‑18 will be in the performance lineup. Our team will share updates about NASA missions and the work these aircraft support. Look for them over Huntington Beach, CA, Oct. 2-4!
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From the X-1 to the X-59, NASA Armstrong has spent 80 years pushing the limits of flight. Our first video dives into a core theme: Speed. Honoring the past and shaping the future of aviation. Learn more: go.nasa.gov/4huQphn
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Happy 80th anniversary, NASA Armstrong! 🎉 Join us in honoring our legacy with a look back at class photos from 1946 to now — celebrating the people who have made, and continue to make, history. 🔗: nasa.gov/armstrong
The NACA Muroc Flight Test Unit received permanent status from Hugh L. Dryden, the NACA's Director of Research. The unit at Muroc now numbered 27 people, with Walt Williams as chief. Credit: NASA

ALT The NACA Muroc Flight Test Unit received permanent status from Hugh L. Dryden, the NACA's Director of Research. The unit at Muroc now numbered 27 people, with Walt Williams as chief. Credit: NASA

This group photo of National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) employees was taken in 1950 in front of the NACA research building on South Base at Edwards Air Force Base, CA. Credit: NASA

ALT This group photo of National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) employees was taken in 1950 in front of the NACA research building on South Base at Edwards Air Force Base, CA. Credit: NASA

Complete NASA Dryden Staff of 1996 for 50th anniversary, on back ramp of building 4800. Credit: NASA/Brent Wood

ALT Complete NASA Dryden Staff of 1996 for 50th anniversary, on back ramp of building 4800. Credit: NASA/Brent Wood

Employees gather for a group photo marking the 80th anniversary of NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

ALT Employees gather for a group photo marking the 80th anniversary of NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

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We’re celebrating NASA research test pilot David “Nils” Larson, who earned the 2026 Iven C. Kincheloe Award from the Society of Experimental Test Pilots for outstanding accomplishment in flight test! ✈️ 🌟 From the X-59’s first flight to its first flight reaching Mach 1.4 and 55,000 feet altitude, Nils’ pioneering work drives aerospace innovation forward. Congratulations, Nils, on an inspiring achievement! 🔗: go.nasa.gov/4rAqsBI
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A double birthday celebration! 🎉 @NASA and @EdwardsAFB in California teamed up to honor NASA Armstrong’s 80th and America’s 250th with STEM activities, a NASA flyover with sonic boom, and remarks from astronaut Matthew Dominick. 🇺🇸 ✈️ Explore more about Armstrong's 80th: go.nasa.gov/4ynbq4Y
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Congratulations to this year’s Administrator’s Agency Honor Award recipients, and thank you for all you do for this agency and our country.
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Welcome home, ER-2! After 3 months supporting the INSPYRE (INjected Smoke and PYRocumulonimbus Experiment) campaign in Montana, NASA’s high-altitude aircraft is back at Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. INSPYRE studies how wildfire smoke gets lofted high into the atmosphere and can influence our climate. More on the INSPYRE campaign: go.nasa.gov/46JtkTd
NASA aircraft on the ramp at sunrise, with vivid pink and purple clouds filling the sky as ground crew members work nearby. Credit: David Telle/Montana Air National Guard

ALT NASA aircraft on the ramp at sunrise, with vivid pink and purple clouds filling the sky as ground crew members work nearby. Credit: David Telle/Montana Air National Guard

View from an aircraft window showing an experiment pod and the ocean below, with bright sunlight reflecting off the water and a faint reflection of an American flag patch on the window. Credit: Darick Alvarez-Alonzo/NASA

ALT View from an aircraft window showing an experiment pod and the ocean below, with bright sunlight reflecting off the water and a faint reflection of an American flag patch on the window. Credit: Darick Alvarez-Alonzo/NASA

NASA aircraft parked on a runway under a dramatic, cloud‑filled sky at dawn, with another red‑and‑white aircraft in the background. Credit: Kirt Stallings/NASA

ALT NASA aircraft parked on a runway under a dramatic, cloud‑filled sky at dawn, with another red‑and‑white aircraft in the background. Credit: Kirt Stallings/NASA

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NASA’s new X-59 test pilot Mike Lippert has powered up the aircraft for his first time as he gets closer to his first flight in the X-plane. With guidance from fellow test pilots and months of simulator training, he’s gaining critical insight to how the cockpit and control room sync in real time. go.nasa.gov/4y34ud4
Mike Lippert, one of NASA’s X‑59 test pilots, sits in the cockpit of the agency’s X‑59 quiet supersonic research aircraft for the first time during an engine run at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

ALT Mike Lippert, one of NASA’s X‑59 test pilots, sits in the cockpit of the agency’s X‑59 quiet supersonic research aircraft for the first time during an engine run at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

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On this 25th anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001, NASA Armstrong joined the Bakersfield Fire Department and the surrounding community in a commemorative flyover. The event paid tribute to the Americans who perished on that tragic day and reaffirmed our commitment to service and remembrance.
Inside‑cockpit view of a NASA jet aircraft captured by NASA photographer Jim Ross during a Sept. 11 commemorative flyover over the Bakersfield Fire Department and surrounding community. Credit: NASA/Jim Ross

ALT Inside‑cockpit view of a NASA jet aircraft captured by NASA photographer Jim Ross during a Sept. 11 commemorative flyover over the Bakersfield Fire Department and surrounding community. Credit: NASA/Jim Ross

Bakersfield Fire Department in California honors the 25th anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001. Credit: NASA/Ryan Kline

ALT Bakersfield Fire Department in California honors the 25th anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001. Credit: NASA/Ryan Kline

A NASA F/A‑18 performs a commemorative flyover above the Bakersfield Fire Department and surrounding community in recognition of the 25th anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

ALT A NASA F/A‑18 performs a commemorative flyover above the Bakersfield Fire Department and surrounding community in recognition of the 25th anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001. Credit: NASA/Carla Escamilla

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NASA Armstrong retweeted
NASA
@NASASep 11
25 years ago, the Sept. 11th tragedy left us forever changed. Today, we pause to remember the Americans who lost their lives — as well as the survivors and the heroes of that day. We will never forget: go.nasa.gov/4r9kCai
NASA astronaut Jessica Meir photographed the New York City area from the International Space Station in March 2020. Credit: NASA

ALT NASA astronaut Jessica Meir photographed the New York City area from the International Space Station in March 2020. Credit: NASA

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Innovation soars with our interns! ✨ At NASA Armstrong, students gain hands-on experience with cutting-edge technology that evolves into real aerospace applications. Guided by mentors with decades of flight research expertise, interns learn how ideas become missions and how data become discovery. Deadline to apply for Spring 2027 internships is September 14: go.nasa.gov/4yvkMv4
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