NASA Lab Completes Engine Checks on New Aircraft

1 min read

Monika Luabeya

Justin Hall, left, controls a subscale aircraft as Justin Link holds the aircraft in place during preliminary engine tests on Friday, Sept. 12, 2025, at NASA’s Armstong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California.

Hall, chief pilot at the center’s Dale Reed Subscale Flight Research Laboratory, and Link, a pilot for small uncrewed aircraft systems, are building the large subscale aircraft to support increasingly complex flight research, offering a more flexible and cost-effective alternative to crewed missions. Once ready, the aircraft will help evaluate new concepts, technologies, and flight controls to support NASA missions on Earth and beyond.

Image Credit: NASA/Christopher LC Clark