NASA Chief to Fly in Experimental ‘Ultra Short’ Aircraft

The space agency on Thursday said the 82-year-old Nelson will take a ride in manufacturer Electra’s EL-2 Goldfinch—a hybrid-electric, experimental aircraft prototype designed to take off and land within soccer field-sized spaces.

The flight, set to lift off Sunday at 11:45 a.m. EST from Manassas Regional Airport (KHEF) in Virginia, will feature ultra short takeoffs and landings with less than 150 feet of ground roll, as well as a battery-only landing.

NASA last month tapped Electra and four others to help develop the core design and technology behind what it describes as a new generation of all-electric commercial airliners.

The space agency awarded the company a contract under its Advanced Aircraft Concepts for Environmental Sustainability (AACES) 2050 program, an initiative for the U.S. to take the lead on decarbonizing aviation in the coming decades. AACES in turn falls under NASA’s Advanced Air Vehicles Program, which studies new forms of propulsion and how they could impact aircraft noise and passenger comfort.

Since launching in 2020, Electra has completed several test flights with the Goldfinch, a unique design that relies on blown-lift propulsion for ultra short takeoffs and landings.

Blown-lift propulsion guides airflows over the wing into large flaps and ailerons, which direct the flows downward to generate additional lift. This, according to Electra, allows the aircraft to take off or land while traveling no faster than a car driving through a residential neighborhood, minimizing its runway requirement.

NASA wants to know how that propulsion system would function on a significantly larger airframe.

Per Electra, the two-seat Goldfinch offers 10 times the range, more than twice the payload, and 70 percent lower operating costs compared to helicopters and electric vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) air taxis. The manufacturer anticipates its flagship EL9, a hybrid-electric, blown-lift aircraft for nine passengers, will fly as an FAA-approved Part 23 aircraft toward the end of the decade.

But a spokesperson told FLYING the EL9 will incorporate some of the early technologies the company develops with NASA. That will allow it to test and potentially certify them in the real world before the partners advance to larger airframes.

Nelson, who is likely to be replaced by Shift4 payments CEO and SpaceX astronaut Jared Isaacman—U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the space agency—in the coming months, will now get a firsthand look at the technology he agreed to fund. Data from that flight and future tests will help Electra refine its design to be as green and low-cost as possible, NASA said.

Electra told FLYING it will share more information about the flight Monday morning.

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