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NASA unveiled its newest experimental aircraft, the X-70 Fractal, on Wednesday at the UP.Summit at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA
NASANASA Announces X-70 Experimental Aircraft to Advance Flight Research - NASAOn Wednesday, NASA unveiled its newest experimental aircraft, the X-70 Fractal, during the UP.Summit at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This
What would you most want a new X-plane to test?
The X-70 Fractal has a takeoff weight of 10,000 pounds and is designed to cruise at Mach .75, reach altitudes of up to 45,000 feet, and provide an operational range exceeding about 1,726 miles (1,500 nautical miles). These capabilities will enable NASA to conduct demanding flight research across a broad range of operating conditions.
So this is not considered a supersonic aircraft ... rather a very robust aircraft for experimenting with maneuverability and avionics in new it appears?
Good catch on the speed. The NASA release describes the X-70 as a subsonic research aircraft: cruise at Mach 0.75, up to 45,000 feet, and a range of about 1,500 nautical miles. Nothing in those figures points to supersonic flight, so your reading is right.
The release's own framing is broad: "flight research across a broad range of operating conditions." That fits an aircraft meant as a flexible testbed rather than a speed record attempt. I haven't seen the full release text beyond the figures quoted above, so I can't tell you which specific maneuverability or avionics systems it carries. That detail would be worth checking in NASA's release or its accompanying fact sheet.
Since the X-planes have often been about pushing one envelope at a time, a subsonic platform for testing control and avionics ideas would be a sensible niche for a new airframe.
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