www.nasa.gov/

Volume 58 Number 7 July 2016

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

New X-plane

X-57, page 8

 NASA Langley/Advanced Concepts Lab, AMA Inc.

This artist’s concept of NASA’s X-57 Maxwell aircraft shows the plane’s specially designed wing and 14 electric motors. 

NASA aeronautics researchers will use the Maxwell to demonstrate that electric propulsion can make planes quieter, 

more efficient and more environmentally friendly.

Distributed electric aircraft named X-57

By Matt Kamlet

Armstrong Public Affairs

With 14 electric motors turning 

propellers and all of them integrated 

into a uniquely designed wing, 

NASA will test new propulsion 

technology using an experimental 

airplane now designated the X-57 

and nicknamed “Maxwell.”

NASA Administrator Charles 

Bolden highlighted the agency’s 

first X-plane designation in a 

decade during his keynote speech 

June 17 in Washington at the 

American Institute of Aeronautics 

and Astronautics (AIAA) annual 

Aviation and Aeronautics Forum 

and Exposition, commonly called 

Aviation 2016.

 “With the return of piloted 

X-planes to NASA’s research 

capabilities – which is a key part 

of our 10-year-long New Aviation 

Horizons initiative – the general 

aviation-sized X-57 will take the 

first step in opening a new era of 

aviation,” Bolden said.

As many as five larger transportscale X-planes also are planned as 

part of the initiative. Its goals – like 

the X-57 – include demonstrating 

advanced technologies to reduce 
X-Press July 2016

Airvolt tests electric motors

Airvolt, page 8

Test stand will 

help prepare 

for X-planes

AFRC2016-0100-1 NASA/Lauren Hughes

Yohan Lin, Airvolt integration lead, prepares the electric propulsion test stand.

The equipment required for an electric propulsion test is ready for research.

The electric propulsion system to be tested is secured at the top of the Airvolt 

test stand and instrumented to collect data.

AFRC2016-0100-4 NASA/Lauren Hughes

AFRC2016-0100-5 NASA/Lauren Hughes

By Jay Levine

X-Press editor

Before the first electric propulsion 

X-planes fly, such as the X-57, 

researchers at NASA Armstrong 

are using a unique test stand to 

understand the intricacies of how 

electric motor systems work.

Made of steel and aluminum, the 

13.5-foot tall Airvolt test stand is 

one of the newest tools in NASA’s 

multi-center approach to explore 

the use of electric propulsion on 

future aircraft. The goal of using 

this technology is to burn less fuel, 

while reducing emissions and noise.

Airvolt was designed and 

fabricated at Armstrong and can 

help researchers anticipate system 

integration challenges and verify 

and validate electric propulsion 

components, said Yohan Lin, 

Airvolt integration lead. 

“The test stand will help us to 

understand electric propulsion and 

the nuances of different systems,” he 

said. “A lot of claims are made about 

the efficiency of electric motors and 

we want to verify that and gain 

experience with commercial off-theshelf, or custom-designed systems.”

Airvolt also permits researchers to 

evaluate early-stage technology and 

build confidence in its use for future 

systems.

One of the key items researchers 

need to know is if integrated 

electric propulsion can be used like 

traditional aircraft propulsion, Lin 

explained. If there are distinctions 

in how the systems work, researchers 

will find methods of managing the 

differences.

For example, Airvolt research 

has already confirmed a challenge 

– electro-magnetic interference, or 

EMI, he explained. EMI is when 

an electric circuit is interrupted 

by an internal or external force or 

condition, which results in noise 

interference.

“EMI issues impacted data 

collection and real-time displays and 

gave us false indicators in the control 

room,” he explained. “It was caused 

by the propulsion system’s noise.” 

The solution was to install a 

combination of hardware filters on 

the test instrumentation and use 

digital filters on the acquired data. 

With the challenges eliminated, 

researchers in the control room were 

able to safely monitor key parameters.

Test operations begin with the 

installation of an electric motor with 

a propeller attached and the system 

affixed to the test stand. A number 

of high-fidelity sensors on the test 

stand provide critical measurements 

to a data acquisition unit that 

processes, records and filters the data 

and sends it to the control room for 

monitoring.

During an electric motor test on 

Airvolt, a 50-foot area is cleared and 

most of the staff is in the control 

room monitoring the research 

results, Lin said. A safety operations 

representative and a quality inspector 

observe the test from a safe distance. 

As the motor starts the sound 

is similar to that of a large, square 

window fan, only slightly louder 

and with the propeller blade turning 

much faster. It is much quieter than 

a typical conventional combustion 

piston engine of the same size.

The first tests on Airvolt in late 

2015 focused on the energy efficient 

Pipistrel Electro Taurus electric 

propulsion system, which is typically 

used for motor gliders, Lin explained. 

The Pipistrel motor is powered 

by lithium polymer batteries and 

produces 40 kilowatts of power, 

which are monitored by the Airvolt 

that is capable of accommodating 

systems that use up to 100 kilowatts 

of power. The test stand can also 

withstand 500 pounds of thrust.

Researchers using Airvolt are 

interested in determining voltage, 
at NASA

An international team of 

astronomers has discovered and 

confirmed a treasure trove of 

new worlds using NASA’s Kepler 

spacecraft on its K2 mission. 

Among the findings tallying 197 

initial planet candidates, scientists 

have confirmed 104 planets 

outside our solar system. Among 

the confirmed is a planetary 

system comprising four promising 

planets that could be rocky.

The planets, all between 20 

and 50 percent larger than Earth 

by diameter, are orbiting the M 

dwarf star K2-72, found 181 light 

years away in the direction of the 

Aquarius constellation. The host 

star is less than half the size of the 

sun and less bright.  The planets’ 

orbital periods range from five and 

a half to 24 days, and two of them 

may experience irradiation levels 

from their star comparable to 

those on Earth. Despite their tight 

orbits – closer than Mercury’s orbit 

around the sun – the possibility 

that life could arise on a planet 

around such a star cannot be ruled 

out, according to lead author Ian 

Crossfield, a Sagan Fellow at the 

University of Arizona’s Lunar and 

Planetary Laboratory.

The researchers achieved this 

“roundup” of exoplanets by 

combining data with followup observations by earth-based 

telescopes including the North 

Gemini telescope and the W. M. 

Keck Observatory in Hawaii, 

the Automated Planet Finder 

of the University of California 

Observatories and the Large 

Binocular Telescope operated by 

the University of Arizona. The 

discoveries are published online 

in the Astrophysical Journal 

Supplement Series.

News

 X-Press July 2016

Brett Pauer was recognized as Armstrong Safety Representative of the 

Year for his contributions to safety 

awareness within his organization 

and the center. Pauer provided 

guidance and input into creating a 

Mishap Response Book for Aeronautics project managers. He also was 

a Safety Day 2016 guest speaker 

about when his car was washed 

away during a flash flood. He received the award from Jim Smolka, 

left and Patrick Stoliker. 

Sherrard selected as 

center’s chief of staff

AFRC2016-0169-1 NASA/Ken Ulbrich

By Leslie Williams

Armstrong news chief

Armstrong Director 

David McBride 

appointed Roberta 

Sherrard to become the 

center’s chief of staff. 

Sherrard will report 

to the center director’s 

office providing expert 

advice and guidance 

on organization and 

management issues across the 

center.

In coordination with NASA 

Headquarters and Armstrong’s 

organizational directors, Sherrard 

will assist with the integration 

of center-wide and institutional 

strategies as well as support center 

activities including programmatic, 

research, mission support and 

technical support functions.

She will also be responsible for 

coordinating center responses 

to agency boards and councils 

where she will represent the center 

director’s office. As chief of staff, 

Sherrard will maintain awareness 

of center capabilities and related 

activities.

Prior to assuming her current 

position, Sherrard was 

the deputy director 

for the Mission 

Information and Test 

Systems Directorate 

from 2008 to 2016. 

She was responsible for 

oversight and direction 

of the center’s mission 

operations technology 

infrastructure and 

services. In addition, she 

played a key role in the creation of 

Armstrong’s Strategic Plan, which 

sets the center’s course for the future.

Her deputy director 

responsibilities included flight-test 

range engineering and operations 

services, aircraft engineering 

simulations and all information 

technology services. She was 

responsible for the strategic 

direction and operational functions 

of the Dryden Aeronautical Test 

Range (DATR), Flight Simulation, 

and Information Technology 

Services in support of Armstrong’s 

missions. 

Sherrard transferred from the Air 

Force Flight Test Center (AFFTC) 

to NASA in 1999. She supported 

the X-34, X-43A and F/A-18 Active 

Aeroelastic Wing projects while 

developing a working knowledge of 

real-time data acquisition systems, 

data processing, graphical displays, 

and software development. She also 

participated in the requirements 

specification, development and 

acceptance testing for the DATR 

Integrated Next Generation 

System, which advanced the 

capabilities to support future test 

programs.

Sherrard began her federal career 

in 1989 at the Air Force Flight Test 

Center at Edwards Air Force Base, 

California. During her time at the 

AFFTC, she worked as a program 

analyst on flight test projects that 

included the YA-7F, AC-130, F-16, 

C-17 and F-22 aircraft for the 

Ridley Mission Control Center.

Sherrard holds a Bachelor of 

Science degree in computer science 

from Arkansas State University, 

Jonesboro, Arkansas. She is the 

recipient of a NASA Outstanding 

Leadership Medal, the NASA 

Group Achievement Award for her 

work with the Columbia Accident 

Investigation Board Support Team 

and she was selected as a Women@

NASA honoree in 2013.

Roberta Sherrard

Safety 

award

Exoplanets 

discovered
 X-Press July 2016

Sons and 

Daughters

Children learn what mom and dad do at work

NASA Armstrong intern 

Ethan Czuppa explains 

elements of the PrandtlD aircraft to Howard 

Joffe and his daughter 

Gabi Joffe. The aircraft 

is the first of its kind that 

features a new method for 

determining the shape of 

the wing with a twist that 

could lead to a revolution 

in aircraft design and 

efficiency.

Izadel “Izzy” Rosas sits in the cockpit of an F/A-18 research jet during a day designed for children to see what mom and 

dad do at work at NASA Armstrong. About 240 children attended the event.

Sons and Daughters, page 6 AFRC2016-0175-37 NASA/Lauren Hughes

By Jay Levine

X-Press editor

Izadel “Izzy” Rosas sits in the 

cockpit of the F/A-18, grabs a hold 

of the control stick and smiles.

While 4-year-old Izzy is a little 

young for the rigors of flying a 

high performance jet, she is not 

too young to be inspired by the 

science, technology, engineering 

and mathematics that enable flight 

research.

During a Sons and Daughters 

to Work Day recently at NASA 

Armstrong, children were invited 

to fly simulators and learn about 

life support pressure suits for highaltitude flight. They also engaged 

in educational activities like an 

exhibit that enabled attendees to 

see what it was like repowering the 

International Space Station. 

A robotics demonstration by the 

Gryffingear award-winning robot 

built and operated by students of 

the Palmdale Aerospace Academy 

also attracted attention. Other 

exhibits including watching 

room-temperature water boil 

to demonstrate high-altitude 

challenges and an opportunity to 

learn more about what mom and 

dad do at work.

“The kids hear us talk about what 

we do at work, but this gives them 

an opportunity to see the hardware 

and have hands-on experiences that 

will help them make connections 

to what they see here with science, 

technology, engineering and 

mathematics,” said Nils Larson, an 

Armstrong parent and lead pilot.

Cooper Larson, a fourth grader, 

gravitated to a robotics display.

“I liked controlling and trying 

to get the balls in the tube,” he 

said. He is also a For Inspiration 

and Recognition of Science and 

Technology (FIRST) Lego League 

Junior Challenge participant.

Nils Larson explained to his son 

the science and engineering as the 

water pushed on a piston using 

hydraulics to make the arm move 

to meet the goal of dropping the 

balls into a tube.

Gabi Joffe, a 10th grader, said 

she liked seeing all the different 

AFRC2016-0175-12 NASA/Lauren Hughes
 X-Press July 2016

AFRC2016-0175-80 NASA/Lauren Hughes AFRC2016-0175-55 NASA/Lauren Hughes

AFRC2016-0175-90 NASA/Lauren Hughes AFRC2016-0175-08 NASA/Lauren Hughes

AFRC2016-0175-49 NASA/Lauren Hughes AFRC2016-0175-14 NASA/Lauren Hughes

Evan Soukup, Brian Soukup, Jackson Soukup, Austin Miller and Travis Evans take time out for a photo.

Part of the Sons and Daughters to Work Day was an opportunity to “fly” in 

an aircraft simulator.

Meleana Miles tries on a pilot’s helmet. Kids learned good skills in science, 

technology, engineering and math could lead to internships and jobs at NASA.

Yasmeen Sandhu learns about the mission control room at NASA Armstrong 

during Sons and Daughters to Work Day.

Jeremy Clay and his daughter Breanna pose with a new friend at the highaltitude flight suit exhibit.

Christi Yapching shows her nephew Anthony Cantalupo and her son Elijah 

Cantalupo some elements where she works in Armstrong Television.
X-Press July 2016

Sons and Daughters... from page 4

AFRC2016-0175-35 NASA/Lauren Hughes

Mera Burton, left, and Maria Caballero help inspire young minds with an interactive education hydraulic arm exhibit 

that attracted many children.

exhibits and learning about them. 

She was particularly impressed that 

the Prandtl-D remotely piloted 

glider is so lightweight. The aircraft 

is the first of its kind that features 

a new method for determining the 

shape of the wing with a twist that 

could lead to a revolution in aircraft 

design and efficiency.

Howard Joffe, her father and 

Armstrong employee, said he 

appreciated the opportunity to show 

his daughter about the Armstrong 

work and “maybe do this kind of 

work. She is interested in what we 

do here.”

Alexis Jensen, an eighth grader, 

took pride in helping her father Red 

Jensen set up the display of remotely 

piloted aircraft with her siblings 

Cate, Jack and Ryan.

 “I helped put the wing on,” she 

said pointing to a large, red Super 

Cub aircraft.

 “They always ask what I do,” 

said Red Jensen, who is the Small 

Unmanned Aircraft Systems chief 

pilot and master technician for the 

Dale Reed Subscale Flight Research 

Lab. “I work with airplanes, but they 

had a chance to see for themselves 

in greater depth. It now is more 

tangible for them what I do.”

Robert Brenizer, a recent high 

school graduate who aspires to 

be a future intern at Armstrong, 

was most impressed with the 

Prototype-Technology Evaluation 

and Research Aircraft (PTERA). 

PTERA is a versatile remotely 

piloted flying laboratory aircraft 

that is bridging the gap between 

wind-tunnel experiments and fullscale flight testing.

 “It is really cool that the PTERA 

is constructed from carbon fiber,” 

he said. “Carbon fiber makes sense 

because it is strong and light weight. 

I was really intrigued by the PTERA 

because I am interested in all things 

aviation from designing to building 

and flying.”

Children experienced jobs with 

focuses on science, technology, 

engineering and mathematics and 

perhaps one day some of them will 

follow in mom or dad’s footsteps.

AFRC2016-0175-48 NASA/Laurn Hughes

Learning what dad does brought Robert “Red” Jensen’s family to the Dale Reed Subscale Flight Research Lab. They 

helped him set up the display that includes the PTERA on the left and the Super Cub on the right. From left are Alexis, 

Cate, Jack, Ryan and Red.
 X-Press July 2016

By Jay Levine

X-Press editor

Jim Smolka’s career at NASA 

Armstrong spanned more than 

three decades before his retirement 

June 30. He flew high-performance 

aircraft and served in a number of 

managerial posts.

The best part of working at 

Armstrong was the people, he said.

“I will miss our world-class 

engineers, the good group of pilots 

and the former pilots who were 

heroes of mine,” Smolka said.

He also loved the research flights.

“Whenever you have a precise 

data point you’re trying to get for 

the engineers, that’s a challenge,” he 

explained.

One of the more interesting flights 

for Smolka was during his tenure on 

the F/A-18 High Alpha Research 

Vehicle, or HARV. The nine-year 

program used research hardware and 

software to examine aircraft control 

in previously hazardous areas of the 

post stall regime.

 “We did some spins to look at 

the basic aircraft characteristics, and 

we also did some spins at military 

power, which were designed to 

collect engine stall data,” he said. 

“Anytime you have an aircraft out of 

control, it gets your attention! It was 

exciting and fun, and we had a lot 

of preparation in the simulators to 

fly it safely.”

Another part of the program 

involved Smolka and former 

Armstrong test pilot Ed Schneider 

learning how to aerially refuel the 

highly modified research aircraft.

 “It was the hardest airplane 

to refuel,” he recalled. “We were 

both experienced pilots in F/A18 aircraft. Because of the mass 

characteristics of this particular 

airplane that made it extremely 

sensitive to control, it was very 

difficult to capture the basket 

and stay in position through the 

refueling. That was the first flight. 

By the end it had looked like we 

did it our whole lives.”

His next adventures will be 

knocking off items from his bucket 

list, starting with four-wheel 

drive exploits, travel to France in 

the spring and trips to Africa to 

photograph a safari and a return 

to see the sights he missed during a 

previous visit to Japan.

Smolka retired as the director 

for Safety and Mission Assurance. 

In that role he was responsible for 

flight and range safety, aviation and 

institutional safety at Armstrong. 

Smolka also served on Armstrong’s 

Airworthiness and Flight Safety 

Review Board, which provides 

independent assessment of each 

flight project’s readiness to proceed 

to flight.

Smolka was the director of Flight 

Operations at Armstrong from 

2012 to 2015. In that post he was 

responsible for the center’s fleet 

of highly modified manned and 

unmanned aircraft that are flown 

on worldwide science, astronomy 

and aeronautical flight research 

missions and the flight and ground 

crews that fly and maintain them.

He previously served as the 

center’s chief engineer, where he 

provided independent technical 

guidance and oversight to 

Armstrong flight projects and 

chaired Armstrong’s Airworthiness 

and Flight Safety Review Board.

Smolka started his Armstrong 

career in 1985 as a research pilot 

and flew a number of research and 

support aircraft. He was project 

pilot on the Advanced Control 

Technology for Integrated Vehicles 

and Intelligent Flight Control 

Systems research projects flown 

on NASA’s now-retired NF-15B 

research aircraft and the Gulfstream/

NASA F-15 Quiet Spike sonic boom 

reduction project. 

He was co-project pilot on the 

F-16XL Supersonic Laminar Flow 

Control aircraft and participated in 

the F-15 Highly Integrated Digital 

Electronic Control flight and engine 

control system projects. He also 

had roles in the Advanced Fighter 

Technology Integration, or AFTI, 

F-16 and the AFTI F-111 Mission 

Adaptive Wing, F-104 and F-15 

Aeronautical Research Aircraft 

experiments and projects flown on 

the NB-52B. 

Before joining NASA, Smolka 

was an F-16 experimental test pilot 

with General Dynamics Corp. for 

two years at Edwards, including 

work as a project pilot with the Air 

Force and NASA Advanced Fighter 

Technology Integration F-16 Joint 

Test Force located at Armstrong, 

then called Dryden Flight Research 

Center.

Named a Fellow of the Society of 

Experimental Test Pilots in 2012 for 

distinction in experimental flight 

test, Smolka has authored several 

technical publications and has 

taught a number of graduate and 

undergraduate courses in aerospace 

for California universities. He has 

accumulated more than 9,000 hours 

of flight time during his 40-year 

flying career.

Smolka completes 30-year career

Gordon, hero and former mechanic, dies at 94

John Allen “Catfish” Gordon, 94, 

who was a member of the team that 

rescued an X-15 pilot, died May 3. 

He was 94.

Gordon was part of the rescue 

team at Mud Lake, Nevada, on Nov. 

9, 1962, when NASA veteran pilot 

John B. “Jack” McKay was forced 

to make an emergency landing 

following an engine failure. 

The X-15 canopy was ejected, the 

nose gear broke and the research 

vehicle flipped onto its back. As 

a result of Gordon’s actions with 

other crew members to cut McKay 

free of the straps keeping him in 

his seat and extracting him from 

the aircraft, he received the NASA 

Exemplary Bravery Medal. He also 

received an Apollo Achievement 

Award during his career. 

He was a mechanic for two 

decades in the 1950s and 1960s, 

retiring in 1972. Some of the 

iconic aircraft on which he worked 

in addition to the X-15 rocket 

plane included the X-24A and 

X-24B. 

Ed Mathieson helps with the traditional greeting for a pilot who has flown 

his last flight. The tradition honored Jim Smolka’s final flight for NASA Armstrong June 28 in an F-15 aircraft.

AFRC2016-0186-75 NASA/Ken Ulbrich
National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration

NASA Armstrong Flight 

Research Center

P.O. Box 273

Edwards, California, 93523-0273

Official Business

Penalty for Private Use, $300

Editor: Jay Levine, 

Logical Innovations, ext. 3459

Managing Editor: Steve Lighthill, NASA

Chief, Strategic Communications:

 Kevin Rohrer, NASA

Address: P.O. Box 273, 

Building 4800, MS 1422

Edwards, California, 93523-0273

Phone: 661-276-3449

FAX: 661-276-3167

The X-Press is published the first Friday of 

each month for civil servants, contractors 

and retirees of the NASA Armstrong Flight 

Research Center.

X-Press July 2016

Airvolt... from page 2

current, power, torque and thrust 

performance of the commercial offthe-shelf components and learning 

about the characteristics of such a 

system, Lin explained. In addition, 

researchers are looking to build 

competencies in electric propulsion 

system verification and validation.

“Preparatory work for developing 

in-house skills and knowledge can’t 

wait until an X-plane comes,” he said. 

“We want lessons learned early on so 

that we can apply them to upcoming 

designs and establish best practices 

for operating those systems.”

Next up for the Airvolt are tests 

during late summer on the Joby 

Aviation JM-1 motor that will 

provide information for modeling 

simulations of the electric 

propulsion elements. 

The data collected from the 

tests will include torque and 

thrust measurements, high-fidelity 

voltage analysis, power efficiency, 

and details on how the system 

behaves. A simulation model will be 

developed from that information 

to study flight controls, power 

management and transition issues 

of a distributed electric aircraft.

To prepare for the possibility of 

distributed electrical propulsion, 

where multiple motors are used, 

“you want to understand the 

characteristics of one motor 

system first so variables can be 

reduced when trouble shooting 

the multi-motor configuration,” 

Lin explained.

“Overall, we are getting 

excellent data,” Lin said. “What 

we are learning will help us to 

understand this new technology, 

and be a starting point for 

complex challenges. Each system 

is different, but we will be ready.”

Tools such as Airvolt support 

a key NASA Aeronautics Research 

Mission Directorate’s goal to 

transition the aviation community 

to low-carbon propulsion – an effort 

that is part of the agency’s multicenter electric propulsion plan. 

The NASA ARMD Advanced Air 

Transportation Technologies hybrid 

gas electric propulsion subproject 

funds the current Airvolt work. 

The AATT subproject aims to 

explore and develop technologies 

and concepts for improved energy 

efficiency and environmental 

compatibility for future fixed wing 

subsonic transports.

X-57... from page 1

fuel use, emissions and noise, and 

thus accelerate their introduction to 

the marketplace.

The X-57 number designation 

was assigned by the U.S. Air Force, 

which manages the history-making 

process, following a request from 

NASA. The first X-plane was the 

X-1, which in 1947 became the first 

airplane to fly faster than the speed 

of sound.

 “Dozens of X-planes of all 

shapes, sizes and purposes have since 

followed – all of them contributing 

to our stature as the world’s leader in 

aviation and space technology,” said 

Jaiwon Shin, associate administrator 

for NASA’s Aeronautics Research 

Mission Directorate. “Planes like 

the X-57, and the others to come, 

will help us maintain that role.”

NASA researchers working directly 

with the hybrid electric airplane 

also chose to name the aircraft 

“Maxwell” to honor James Clerk 

Maxwell, the 19th century Scottish 

physicist who did groundbreaking 

work in electromagnetism. His 

importance in contributing to the 

understanding of physics is rivaled 

only by Albert Einstein and Isaac 

Newton.

As part of a four-year flight 

demonstrator plan, NASA’s 

Scalable Convergent Electric 

Propulsion Operations Research 

project will build the X-57 by 

modifying a recently procured 

Italian-designed Tecnam P2006T 

twin-engine light aircraft.

Its original wing and two gasfueled piston engines will be 

replaced with a long, skinny wing 

embedded with 14 electric motors 

– 12 on the leading edge for take 

offs and landings, and one larger 

motor on each wing tip for use 

while at cruise altitude.

NASA’s aeronautical innovators 

hope to validate the idea that 

distributing electric power across a 

number of motors integrated with 

an aircraft in this way will result in 

a five-time reduction in the energy 

required for a private plane to 

cruise at 175 mph.

Several other benefits 

would result as well. Batteries 

will solely power “Maxwell,” 

eliminating carbon emissions and 

demonstrating how demand would 

shrink for lead-based aviation fuel 

still in use by general aviation.

Energy efficiency at cruise 

altitude using X-57 technology 

could benefit travelers by reducing 

flight times, fuel usage, as well as 

reducing overall operational costs 

for small aircraft by as much as 

40 percent. Typically, to get the 

best fuel efficiency an airplane has 

to fly slower than it is able. Electric 

propulsion essentially eliminates the 

penalty for cruising at higher speeds.

Finally, as most drivers of hybrid 

electric cars know, electric motors 

are quieter than conventional 

piston engines. The X-57’s electric 

propulsion technology is expected 

to significantly decrease aircraft 

noise, making it less annoying to 

the public.

The X-57 research started as 

part of the NASA Aeronautics 

Research Mission Directorate’s 

Transformative Aeronautics 

Program’s Convergent Aeronautics 

Solutions project, with the flight 

demonstrations being performed as 

part of the Flight Demonstration 

Concepts project in the Integrated 

Aviation Systems Program.