NASA introduced the X-70 Fractal, a crewed experimental aircraft it expects to fly within two years, at UP.Summit on November 4, 2026.
NASA administrator Jared Isaacman introduced the aircraft at UP.Summit, held at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on November 4, 2026. NASA expects the X-70 to fly under its banner for the first time within two years.
The X-70 is a crewed aircraft built as a reusable, rapidly configurable research platform for testing advanced flight-control systems.
NASA said the aircraft will allow the agency to test new maneuvering abilities in crewed flight.
One airframe, many experiments
NASA's other experimental aircraft are built around specific research objectives, but the X-70 is meant to accommodate different experiments and technologies without requiring a new aircraft for each one.
The X-70 is meant to carry several lines of research over its life, with experiments swapped out as programmes change.
Its modular design allows experimental payloads to be swapped between research programmes, whether they’re carried internally or externally.
Engineers can reconfigure the flight-control system rather than replace it, letting them test different aerodynamic concepts within the same vehicle.
The X-70 Fractal gives NASA a crewed, high-performance platform to test advanced flight-control, maneuverability, and other cutting-edge technologies in real flight
Its modular design and ability to rapidly swap internal and external payloads will keep our teams flying, learning, and moving quickly from one experiment to the next.
The X-70 as NASA describes it
According to NASA, payload capacity is up to 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms) across internal and external locations, while takeoff weight is 10,000 pounds (4,536 kilograms).
| Measure | NASA figure |
|---|---|
| Payload | up to 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms) |
| Takeoff weight | 10,000 pounds (4,536 kilograms) |
| Cruise speed | Mach 0.75 |
| Altitude | up to 45,000 feet (13,700 meters) |
| Range | expected to exceed about 1,726 miles (1,500 nautical miles) |
The aircraft is designed to cruise at Mach 0.75 and fly as high as 45,000 feet (13,700 meters).
NASA expects the operational range to exceed about 1,726 miles (1,500 nautical miles).
Outlets differ slightly on the weight figures. The Independent gave the payload as up to 910 kilograms and the takeoff weight as 4,500kg, while other outlets reported 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms) and 10,000 pounds (4,536 kilograms). Whether that gap is rounding or a real discrepancy isn’t settled.
Where outlets differ on the figures
The Independent
Payload and takeoff weight
- Payload up to 910 kilograms
- Takeoff weight 4,500kg
Gizmodo, Aerotime and The Verge
Payload and takeoff weight
- Payload up to 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms)
- Takeoff weight 10,000 pounds (4,536 kilograms)
The agency said the aircraft can support challenging flight experiments under many different operating conditions.
For decades, NASA Aeronautics has used X-planes to develop technologies that advance aviation
The X-plane line, from 1944
A line of X-planes, among the longest-running experimental aviation research efforts in the United States, reaches back to the 1940s.
The program started in 1944 with the Bell X-1, developed by NASA's predecessor alongside the US Air Force, and the aircraft broke the sound barrier in 1947.
Among the family's notable aircraft is the X-15 hypersonic research aircraft. It reached the fastest speed achieved by a crewed, powered aircraft in 1967, a mark it still holds.
NASA is now conducting test flights of the X-59, a quiet supersonic jet that can pass the sound barrier while making an audible thump instead of a sonic boom.
Lockheed Martin won the contract to develop the X-59 in 2016, with NASA aiming for a vehicle ready for testing by 2020. Its maiden flight took place on October 28, 2025.
NASA unveiled the X-57 Maxwell in 2016, its first X-plane in over a decade, but cancelled it in 2023 over safety issues involving its propulsion system.
- 1944Bell X-1
The programme begins with a joint project between NASA's predecessor and the US Air Force.
- 1947Sound barrier
The Bell X-1 breaks the sound barrier.
- 1967X-15 record
The X-15 sets the highest speed recorded by a crewed, powered aircraft.
- 2016X-59 contract
NASA awards Lockheed Martin the contract, aiming for a vehicle ready for testing by 2020.
- 2016X-57 Maxwell
Announced as NASA's first X-plane in more than a decade.
- 2023X-57 cancelled
Cancelled because of safety problems with its propulsion system.
- 28 Oct 2025X-59 first flight
The quiet supersonic jet makes its maiden flight.
- 4 Nov 2026X-70 unveiled
Isaacman introduces the X-70 Fractal at UP.Summit.
Popular Science advised treating experimental aircraft timelines with caution, citing the gap between the X-59's planned and actual first flight.
What is settled and what is not
The only image NASA shared in the announcement was AI-generated and showed the X-70 largely shrouded in fog. Popular Science noted that the rounded cockpit, splayed tail fins and extended wings in that image may not appear in the final design.
What we know
- NASA expects the X-70's first flight within the next two years.
- The announcement took place at UP.Summit on November 4, 2026.
- Payload capacity is up to 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms), NASA said.
Still unclear
- The X-70's final design, since NASA released only an AI-generated image.
- The exact date of the first flight.
- Whether the X-70 will carry morphing wings or air-burst controls, which were presented only as possibilities.
- Whether the payload and weight differences between outlets are rounding or a genuine discrepancy.
It’s exciting to bring on another X-plane to accelerate and drive aeronautics research.
This is why people come to NASA: to build, to learn, and most importantly, to fly,
NASA Aeronautics said the modular design would let the agency move internal and external payloads in and out quickly, speeding their movement and helping advance aviation technology. Isaacman said more was coming, and that the future once imagined in science fiction was there to be built.
Isaacman said the X-70 is just one part of what he called a new beginning for aeronautics.
The first flight is a target within the next two years.
