NASA's Secretive Boeing 737-700 Takes Flight as Reduced-Gravity Research Aircraft

A Boeing 737-700 with a secretive past has been unveiled in its new NASA colors. The aircraft, registered N837NA, was previously used by the U.S. Air Force as a flying testbed under the registration N712JM and is now being converted into a reduced-gravity research aircraft.

The 737 will conduct parabolic flights simulating lunar gravity to support testing of spacesuits and other equipment for the Artemis program. NASA's procurement documentation noted that Denmar Technical Services, the contractor performing the conversion, had already worked on the aircraft for the Air Force and possessed knowledge of its classified modifications.

The USAF confirmed that the 737 had been acquired as a flying testbed and that its program had ended, clearing the way for the aircraft to be transferred to NASA. The exact purpose of the aircraft's previous mission remains undisclosed.

NASA has awarded Denmar a contract worth up to $8.4 million to restore and modify the 737 for its new research mission. The aircraft will operate from NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston and Edwards Air Force Base, with a role in testing autonomy technologies, sensors, and other digital systems.

The Boeing 737-700 was built in 2013 and has never carried airline passengers. Its unusual history began to emerge around 2020 when it was photographed in California still wearing the green protective coating on its fuselage.