NASA’s X-66 aircraft, the centerpiece of its Sustainable Flight Demonstrator project, takes the term “sustainable” seriously by reusing an old MD-90 cockpit as the basis for its new X-66 simulator.

When aircraft are retired, they often end up in “graveyard” storage yards, where they spend years being scoured for spare parts by manufacturers, researchers, engineers and designers. That’s where the X-66 team found its new X-66 simulator cockpit before shipping it to NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California.

As part of the project, the MD-90 cockpit will be catalogued, cleaned and disassembled for use in the simulator. This is where NASA Armstrong’s Simulation Engineering Division comes in. The team develops high-fidelity engineering simulators that allow pilots and engineers to play out real-world scenarios in a safe environment.

As with any X-Plane, a simulator allows researchers to test the unknown without compromising pilot safety or the structural integrity of the aircraft. A simulator also gives the team a chance to work through design challenges as the aircraft is being built, ensuring the final product is as efficient as possible.

To assemble the X-66, the project team will use the airframe of another MD-90, shorten it, install new engines and replace the wing assemblies with a truss-strut wing structure.

The Sustainable Flight Demonstrator project is NASA’s attempt to develop more efficient aircraft as the country works toward sustainable aviation. In addition to the X-66’s revolutionary wing design, the project team will work with industry, academia, and other government organizations to identify, select, and advance sustainable aircraft technologies.

The aim of the project is to develop the next generation of narrow-body aircraft, the workhorses of commercial aviation fleets around the world. Boeing and NASA are collaborating to develop the experimental demonstrator aircraft.