Commercial air travel may soon return to supersonic speeds. NASA conducted a key test flight on Friday with its X-59 aircraft, advancing efforts to achieve a reduced sonic thump rather than a disruptive boom. Early indications from the trial appear promising.

NASA released video of the X-59's first supersonic run on Saturday, allowing viewers to observe the results directly. The clip lasts roughly 44 seconds.

The footage shows the distinctive angular shape of the X-59 during flight. NASA personnel announce increasing Mach numbers until the aircraft surpasses the speed of sound, marked by a distinct change in audio tone to indicate supersonic conditions.

Although the released video is brief, the complete mission lasted 81 minutes. Test pilot Jim Less flew alongside a chase aircraft and reached Mach 1.1, equivalent to 713 mph.

Developing a sonic thump without the boom

The X-59 has completed 16 flights since its initial test in October. The team has progressively raised speed and altitude limits to expand the flight envelope, culminating in last week's Mach trial.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman noted that additional flights are scheduled to push the aircraft to Mach 1.4, or 925 mph, at 55,000 feet. Reaching this milestone would allow the next phase, which involves supersonic passes over American communities to collect public response data on the quieter thump.

Positive outcomes from these community tests could pave the way for commercial supersonic operations over land for the first time in more than two decades. The Concorde previously offered such service from 1976 to 2003 but was restricted to coastal routes due to overland flight prohibitions.

Supersonic travel could theoretically resume quickly with existing infrastructure following the President's executive order that ended the 52-year domestic overflight restriction. Nevertheless, the X-59 program focuses on enabling high-speed flight while minimizing disturbances to communities below. Given recent challenges, this measured approach holds particular value.