The X-59 Journey to Aeroelastic Airworthiness Clearance

The X-59 aircraft was conceived with a partnership between Lockheed Martin (LM) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to demonstrate sonic boom reductions enabled by aerodynamic shaping. In order to safely fly the X-59 aircraft and get approval for expanding the flight envelope, LM and NASA structural dynamics engineers developed aircraft finite element models, completed numerous flutter analyses and aeroservoelasticity analyses, and conducted several structural ground tests. This paper will describe the journey towards attaining aeroelastic airworthiness clearance of the X-59 aircraft.