By J. D. Hunley - Public Affairs Specialist/Historian
On March 27, NASA began flight testing a new thrust-vectoring concept on an F-15 research aircraft to improve performance and aircraft control.
Dryden expects to fly its F-15 research aircraft equipped with thrust-vectoring nozzles approximately 100 hours over the next two years. The new concept should lead to significant increases in performance of both civil and military aircraft flying at subsonic and supersonic speeds.
The twin-engine F-15 is equipped with new Pratt & Whitney nozzles that can turn up to 20 degrees in any direction, giving the aircraft thrust control in the pitch (up and down) and yaw (left and right) directions. This deflected (vectored) thrust can be used to reduce drag and increase fuel economy or range as compared with conventional aerodynamic controls, which increase the retarding forces (drag) acting upon the aircraft when used for trim.
Another important feature is the nozzles' production-oriented design, which would require minimal changes to be incorporated into current or future aircraft.
The applications of the technology range from both existing and prospective military fighters to the High Speed Civil Transport, a supersonic airliner it its conceptual stages that would carry 300 passengers at 2.4 times the speed of sound.
The new nozzles, installed on Dryden's F-15 Advanced Controls Technology for Integrated Vehicles (ACTIVE) aircraft, underwent ground testing at Edwards on the Air Force flight Test Center's universal horizontal thrust stand in early November, demonstrating that all systems essential for safe operation of the aircraft are functioning correctly. A functional check flight of the F-15 ACTIVE occurred on March 7, but no vectoring of the nozzles occurred then..
On subsequent flights, Dryden researchers expect to fly at speeds up to Mach 1.85 (1.85 times the speed of sound) and at angles of attach up to 30 degrees. "Angle of attack" is a term used to describe the relationship between the aircraft's body/wings and its actual flight path.
For NASA's flight research, each nozzle is mounted to one of the F-15 ACTIVE's two F100-PW-229 engines, which have modified fan duct cases to provide the additional strength required to withstand the vectoring forces. Installation of the nozzles also required modifications to the aircraft's rear fuselage and main engine mounts.
The research program is the product of a collaborative effort by NASA, the Air Force's Wright Laboratory, Pratt & Whitney, and McDonnell Douglas Aerospace. The project manager for Dryden, Don Gatlin, said that "this program is an example of government and industry cooperating to bring an important technology to maturity."
By Cheryl Agin-Heathcock - X-Press Editor
A fit-check of the Linear Aerospike SR Experiment (LASRE) pod to Dryden's SR-71 #844, took place on Feb. 15 at the Lockheed Martin Skunkworks in Palmdale.
LASRE is designed to flight test a linear aerospike rocket engine mounted on a 10-percent-scale, half-span model of Lockheed Martin's X-33 Reusable Launch Vehicle concept. This experiment will provide the first actual flight data of a linear aerospike engine.
The lifting body model and linear aerospike rocket engine sit on a deflection plate that separates the experiment from the canoe. The canoe holds propellant tanks and instrumentation equipment, and serves as the mount for the experiment. The entire pod weighs just under seven tons.
One of the differences between linear aerospike and traditional rocket engines is that the linear aerospike utilizes the airflow around the engine to form the outer "nozzle." There are four thrusters on each side of the engine for a total of eight, which combine the fuel, oxidizer, and ignition source for the engine.
The propulsion directorate at Phillips Laboratory recently began checking out the engine in preparation for its firing. Following the tests at Phillips Laboratory, the aerospike engine will come to Dryden to be fastened to the SR-71 research aircraft.
The aerospike engine will get the oblong X-33 lifting body into orbit. It will reduce drag and compensate for altitude changes.
Those advantages are what the Skunkworks hopes will allow it to win an X-33 competition by proving it can build a prototype that will get more cargo, like satellites, into space more cheaply.
Besides the Skunkworks, teams led by McDonnell Douglas and Rockwell International are vying for the contract to build the X-33.
Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Al., is NASA's host center for the X-33 program. Also involved in the LASRE project are Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Division, builder of the fuel system; Rockwell's Rocketdyne Division, builder of the aerospike engine; Allied Signal, contractor for the control system; and the USAF's Phillips Laboratory, responsible for ground testing the pod prior to flight. LASRE will be flight tested at Dryden later this spring.
NASA has flight tested a "synthetic vision" concept that promises to help make supersonic flight practical and affordable for the average air traveler close to the turn of the century. The tests, in which pilots conducted windowless landings, were flown on a NASA 737 aircraft over a three-month period ending in January.
Sensors included a digital video camera, three infrared cameras, and two microwave radar systems. The video and infrared images were combined with computer-generated graphics that gave the pilot cues during approaches and landings. One goal of the tests is to identify sensors that will replace or exceed the capabilities of human vision.
The same technology will provide all-weather flying capabilities for high-speed civil transport and future subsonic transport aircraft, allowing pilots to fly and land safely in low-visibility conditions. This will increase the number of flights in poor weather, reduce terminal delays and cut costs for the airline industry and passengers.
Researchers are hoping that by enhancing the pilot's vision with high-resolution video displays, aircraft designers of the future can do away with the expensive, mechanically-drooping nose of early supersonic transports. Forward-looking windows would be eliminated, making way for large-format displays filled with high- resolution images and computer graphics.
As envisioned, such an aircraft would carry about 300 passengers at speeds up to Mach 2.4, (about 1,400 mph) over a 5,000 nautical mile range. Travel time across the Pacific Ocean would be cut in half, with only an approximate 20 percent fare increase over current subsonic prices.
The tests were flown on NASA's Transport Systems Research Vehicle (TSRV), a Boeing 737 equipped with a windowless research cockpit, and a Westinghouse BAC 1-11 avionics test aircraft. About 20 flights took place from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility at Wallops Island, Va., and Langley Air Force Base in Hampton, Va.
The flight tests consisted of two phases. During the sensor data collection phase, the TSRV and BAC 1-11 flew typical approach, cruise and holding patters and tested the suitability of sensors to detect airborne traffic and ground objects. During the pilot-in-the- loop phase, the TSRV flew approaches and landings from the research cockpit and tested the pilot's ability to easily control and land the aircraft relying only on the sensor and computer-generated images and symbology.
The flight tests are part of the HSR Program's Flight Deck Systems research effort, a part of which aims to develop technologies allowing airframe companies to design, built and certify a cockpit without forward-facing windows. Such a cockpit is important to a high-speed civil transport because it would avoid the need to incorporate a Concorde-like drooped nose design, which adds weight and mechanical complexity and increases the fuel required for every flight.
The TSRV is a Boeing 737 aircraft that has been modified to incorporate a research flight deck in the passenger section. This research aircraft has been operated by NASA for more than 21 years and has conducted pioneering flight systems and aeronautics research ranging from electronic flight displays to first-of-its-kind satellite navigation and guidance, to proving the viability of airborne wind shear sensors.
The HSR Flight Deck research team includes NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va.; NASA Ames Research Center, Mountain View, Calif.; The Boeing Company, Seattle, Wa.; McDonnell Douglas Corporation, Long Beach, Calif.; and Honeywell Incorporated, Phoenix, Az. Subcontractors supporting the flight tests in Rockwell Collins, Cedar Rapids, Iowa; FLIR Systems, Portland, Ore.; and Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Md.
A NASA Research Announcement (NRA) soliciting industry and government proposals aimed at restructuring the X-34 program allowing for one or more small technology demonstrator vehicles to begin flight tests in 1998 was recently released.
The original X-34 was to have been a small, reusable commercial launch vehicle as well as a technology test bed for the Agency's Reusable Launch Vehicle activities. The Cooperative Agreement which formed this initial industry-government partnership has been revoked by industry due to its concerns about the commercial viability of the effort.
The intention to issue an NRA by the end of March was recently announced in the "Commerce Business Daily." "This announcement marks an important step in focussing the X-34 program on our top priority of technology demonstration flight tests," said Gary Payton, Director of NASA's Reusable Launch Vehicle Program. "This will allow government and industry to get on with the important task of demonstrating key technologies in the demanding test environments that address tomorrow's reusable space transportation needs," Payton said.
This restructured technology demonstration program -- not tied to potential commercial applications -- is being planned to bridge the gap between this spring's flight test of the DC-XA (NASAs's Advanced Delta Clipper), and projected flight tests of a larger X-33 demonstrator in the spring of 1999. The X-33 program could lead to a national, industry-led decision, by the year 2000, to develop a commercial vehicle early next century which will provide affordable, reliable and reusable access to space. Results of the X- 34 program will be shared with industry which is soon to begin development of the X-33.
Plans for the program include launch and landing one or more unmanned, reusable vehicles up to 25 times within a year; powered flights to at least 250,000 feet and capable of attaining 8-times the speed of sound or better; use of advanced thermal protection systems flying subsonically through rain and fog; flights of new technologies that test composite structures; and demonstrations of safe abort and autonomous landing techniques, in high cross winds, utilizing modern landing systems.
The government commitment in the restructured program is estimated to be approximately $60 million.
The Commerce Business Daily announcement is also available through the Internet via the Marshall Space Flight Center Procurement Home Page at URL:
and the NASA RLV Home Page URL:
The four-story-high, newly refurbished NASA Delta Clipper vehicle recently rolled out of McDonnell Douglas' facility in Huntington Beach, Calif., for transport to New Mexico in preparation for flight tests beginning in May.
Dubbed the DC-XA, for Delta Clipper-Experimental Advanced, the unpiloted, single-stage vehicle is being developed under a cooperative agreement between NASA and its industry partner to demonstrate new technologies needed for a reliable, affordable, reusable launch vehicle that could be operated commercially by American industry with NASA as one of its customers.
"This is a radically different vehicle from the DC-X that flew last year in tests conducted for the Air Force," said DC-XA project manager Dan Dumbacher at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Al. "Many technology innovations have been introduced to the vehicle and when we test fly it this spring we'll be writing a new page in the history of space transportation systems."
The DC-XA will be the first rocket ever to fly with a composite hydrogen tank. The tank, built by McDonnell Douglas, is made of graphite-epoxy and is 1,200 pounds lighter than the aluminum tank used in the DC-X. Achieving that kind of weight reduction is essential to the development of a single-stage-to-orbit reusable launch vehicle. The composite tank successfully withstood cryogenic (extemely cold) testing under simulated flight conditions at Marshall in December. The series of flight tests planned for the DC-XA at the Army's White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico will demonstrate the hydrogen tank's performance as well as that of other new advanced technology components of the vehicle in a real- world operating environment, according the Dumbacher. These components include a Russian-built aluminum-lithium-alloy liquid- oxygen tank; a composite intertank to connect the hydrogen and oxygen tanks; and an auxiliary propulsion system consisting of a composite liquid-hydrogen feedline, a composite liquid-hydrogen valve and a liquid-to-gas conversion system in the flight reaction- control system. The U.S. Air Force's Phillips Laboratory at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, will manage flight-test operations.
The DC-XA, X-34 and X-33 comprise NASA's Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Program, a partnership among NASA, the Air Force and private industry to develop a new generation of single- stage-to-orbit launch vehicles. The knowledge and experience acquired in developing and test flying the DC-XA will be used by NASA and an industry partner in development of the X-33, a larger advanced-technology demonstrator. NASA will select its industry partner for that vehicle later this year, with test flights planned for 1999. The X-34, a small technology vehicle to be developed and flight tested by 1998, also will contribute valuable data to the X-33 program, which in turn could lead to a national, industry-led decision to develop a commercial reusable launch vehicle early next century.
NASA's investment in the DC-XA program in $20 million for hardware and $30 million for integration. In addition to Marshall, New Mexico's USAF Phillips Lab and U.S. Army White Sands Missile Range, as well as NASA's Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va., and Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., are supporting DC- XA.
The seventh reunion of former employees of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), NASA's predecessor organization, will be held in Hampton, Va., Oct. 3 - 6. Langley Research Center, once known as the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory, will be the cornerstone of the visit by all former NACA people and their spouses who will gather in Hampton to renew old acquaintances and talk of times past.
The 1996 Reunion VII marks the 38th year since Congress transformed the NACA to NASA and the 20th anniversary of the first NACA reunion, held in Asheville, N.C.
Hosting the reunion will be the Langley NACA/NASA Alumni Association with Cornelius "Neal" Driver serving as reunion chairperson. The Holiday Inn Hotel and Conference Center in Hampton will serve as reunion headquarters. Activities are being scheduled to meet a variety of tastes, including tours of historic Jamestown, Yorktown and Williamsburg and an evening at the Virginia Air and Space Center with its IMAX theater, located in downtown Hampton. Reunion VII is also open to all NASA retirees and their guests, not just those who worked at the NACA.
To register, or for more information, call or write: NACA Reunion VII, NASA/LaRCAA, Mail Stop 496, Hampton, Va. 23681-0001, (804) 595-1306.
The following is a memo recently issued by Dryden's Director, Kenneth J. Szalai, regarding the 1996 national observance of "Take Our Daughters to Work" day.
Dryden Flight Research Center will join other employers nation- wide in observance of the "Take Our Daughters to Work" day on April 25, 1996. This observance gives parents a chance to share with their daughters what they do every day. Even if you do not have a daughter you could invite one of your neighbor's daughters. I enthusiastically support this effort to involve children in the Dryden community.
The Women's Advisory Group is sponsoring this activity and will have scheduled activities in the morning for the girls. Sponsors will join the girls for an organized lunch in the ISF and share their workplace in the afternoon. For more information and registration please contact Carmen Arevalo at ext. 3105. Schedule of events will be released at a later date.
Please observe the normal precautions you would take with any visitor to your area. For example, visitors must be escorted at all times, all area restrictions and safety requirements must be observed, and so forth. Let's make this a memorable day for our daughters.
The national observance of "Take Our Sons to Work" will follow in May.
Editor's note: Information from the lifting body flights contributed significantly to the development of the space shuttle program by showing that orbiters could land without special engines to provide power during landings. The following article is a reprint of NASA Flight Research Center X-Press article, dated October 13, 1972 . The article has been proofed by Dale Reed and changes have been made for accuracy.
Late last week Flight Research Center pilot Bill Dana flew the 100th flight in the lifting body program, which was begun over seven years ago.
Earlier this week, the reconfigured X-24B, the newest of the lifting body shapes, was accepted by the Government in ceremonies held at the Denver plant of Martin Marietta. The X-24B is expected here early next week.
The 100th lifting body flight was made in the M2-F3, a modified version of the M2-F2 that made the first heavyweight lifting body flight on July 12, 1966, with Center pilot Milt Thompson at the controls.
Six months later, Bruce Peterson flew the HL-10 on its maiden flight. It was this flight that disclosed the serious flow separation problems that required additional wind tunnel studies and subsequent modifications. The HL-10 did not return to active flight status until some 15 months later.
In May of 1967 the M-2 was severely damaged in a landing accident. The next year, following several months of "inspection" by the Center and Northrop, a decision was announced to partially restore the M-2. Modified with a new center fin, the redesigned M2- F3 was returned to the Center and made its first flight in 1970.
Following minor modifications to the leading edge of its vertical fins, the HL-10 returned to active flight status in March of 1968 and continued through June of 1970. The first of the lifting bodies to use liquid rockets for main propulsion, the HL-10 flew to an altitude of 29 kilometers (90, 303 feet) on Feb. 27, 1970, and a speed of 1975 kilometers per hour (1228 mph or Mach 1.86) on Feb. 18, 1970.
An Air Force designed lifting body, originally called the SV-5J, later changed to the X-24A, was delivered in late 1967. With USAF Major Jerry Gentry at the controls, the X-24A made its first flight on March 17, 1969. Center research pilot John Manke piloted the X-24A on its final flight on June 4, 1971, prior to its conversion to the X-24B.
As of this time, it is planned to continue flying the M-2 for the rest of this year's flying season. Several other pilots will probably be checked out.
The X-24B turnover ceremonies marked nine months of work to convert the lifting body to the new and longer shape. The X-24B was accepted by a representative of the Air Force's Flight Dynamics Laboratory. Acting Center Director De Beeler and project pilot John Manke officially represented the Center at the ceremonies.
Following delivery, the new shape will be readied for flight, now tentatively scheduled for next spring.
The following article is from the December 5, 1975 issue of the X-Press. It has been proofed by Dale Reed and changes have been made for accuracy.
The final flight of the X-24B took place Wednesday, November 26. Tom McMurtry, Flight Research Center pilot, was at the controls as the craft made its final flight.
The X-24B, successor to the M-2 and HL-10 lifting bodies, was carried aloft under the B-52 for the last time and, after a four minute glide flight, made a 200 mph landing on the dry lakebed here.
Data from the X-24B will be used to help provide the technology for the development of future aircraft capable of hypersonic (Mach 5+) speeds.
The X-24B, a highly modified version of the X-24A, was first flown in the joint NASA/USAF research program on August 1, 1973 by John A. Manke, chief X-24B project pilot for the Flight Research Center. Two other pilots, Lt.Col. Mike Love, chief project pilot for the Air Force Flight Test Center, and William Dana of NASA, also flew the X-24B through it flight research program, which concluded on September 9, 1975.
During the 30-flight program the X-24B used a small rocket engine to propel the 37-foot craft to a maximum speed of 1164 mph (1.76 times the speed of sound) and a peak altitude of 74,100 feet.
Following the conclusion of the flight research program, a series of pilot checkout flights was begun. Three pilots - USAF Capt. Francis R. Scobee, and Einar Enevoldson and Tom McMurtry of NASA, each made two glide flights in the X-24B.
All but two of the X-24B recoveries were made on the dry lakebed. The other two flights landed on the concrete runway at Edwards Air Force Base.
by Al Bowers - Aerospace Engineer
Continuing our observance of the 50th Anniversary of Dryden, with the help of art-enthusiast Al Bowers, this month we are featuring "XB-70", an acrylic by Ren Wicks.
The conventional thinking on strategic bomber aircraft in the early Cold War period centered on the classical "higher, faster, bigger is better" school of thought. The last of these was the XB- 70A Valkyrie.
The XB-70A was the result of a US Air Force request for proposals in 1955. The original requirement was for an aircraft that could perform a subsonic cruise and supersonic dash.
The first XB-70A rolled out on May 11, 1964; the second (and last) aircraft followed one year later. The aircraft were immense in size, being 194 feet long and 105 feet in wingspan. These dimensions are somewhat arbitrary in flight, as aerodynamic heating of the aircraft at its Mach 3 cruise speed cause thermal expansion stretching the aircraft in excess of 18 inches. Maximum skin temperatures due to aerodynamic heating reached nearly 700 degrees at Mach 3 cruise.
Maximum takeoff weight was 550,000 pounds with an empty weight of the airframe being 128,000 pounds.
The mammoth aircraft used six YJ-93-GE-3 engines providing total static thrust of 150,000 pounds, with intakes that started out as 65 inches tall, and 47 inches wide, and stretched nearly 80 feet to the engine faces. Less than 10 percent of the aircraft structure was titanium, with over 60 percent of the structure being composed of stainless steel.
Unique to the configuration of the XB-70A were the large folding wingtips, which remain the largest movable flight surfaces on any aircraft. These provided multiple advantages, improving directional stability, reducing longitudinal trim drag, and -- most beneficial of all -- providing compression lift. Compression lift is caused by the folded wingtips trapping the bow shock wave from the wings underneath the aircraft. This results in a 30 percent increase in lift-to-drag ratio, a prime figure of merit for performance. The two aircraft accumulated 83 and 46 flights, respectively.
Unfortunately for the USAF, the development of the B-70 as an operational bomber halted abruptly when missile development killed the classic "faster, higher, bigger is better" aircraft. However, a follow-on program of flight testing was approved on a joint USAF/NASA project. The first NASA flight was on April 25, 1967. NASA pilots assigned to the program were Fitz Fulton and Don Mallick. There were 22 flights made on this flight test program that were used to research technologies for future high speed flight research.
Tragedy struck the XB-70A program on June 8, 1966. A mid-air collision claimed the lives of NASA pilot Joe Walker and USAF pilot Carl Cross, severely injuring USAF pilot Al White, and resulting in the loss of a NASA F-104 as well as the second XB-70A. The last flight of the aircraft was on February 4, 1969, when the XB-70A was ferried by a joint NASA/USAF crew to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, where the first aircraft remains on display.
There is something about human nature that causes us to believe the past was a better time. I hear this sometimes, when Dryden staff talk about the way "it used to be" in glowing terms and in contrast to the present.
In thinking about the earlier days at Dryden when I was here, and then about the present, I come to one conclusion...times are as good as you make them.
"Gus" Gustaferro, former Deputy Director of Ames, and an extraordinary manager, said "I am the kind of person, that if they give me a lemon, I'll make lemonade, and set up a lemonade stand." There is a profound lesson in this, isn't there? We are the only ones who can determine our own feelings and viewpoints.
Ever since I joined NASA, the following things have been of concern: budget levels, staffing complement, political issues, management competency, and workload. The things that people seem most proud of years later, are: doing a good job on something, contributing to a successful program, overcoming obstacles, succeeding when things were tough.
Mr. Alexander Poukhov, Chief Engineer at Tupolev Design Bureau in Moscow, and a dear friend, talks about the recent achievements of refurbishing the Tu-144 as a giant achievement not because of the technical work it took, but because it was done under adverse circumstances. He talks about the human achievement in the very difficult environment in Russia, with great pride.
I believe that every person at Dryden has an immense opportunity to contribute, to excel, and to advance in responsibility and capability. The program opportunities are eye-watering, ranging from assaults on the high altitude barrier, hypersonic flight, reusable launch vehicles, and unpiloted vehicles. There is room for advances in every technical discipline within these programs. Dryden staff have the opportunity to invent, innovate, create, and explore.
The budget "Challenge" is opening new opportunities to reinvent processes, eliminate bureaucratic procedures, and try very radical new ways of doing business in every administrative and programmatic area of Dryden.
The commitment of the Agency and of Dryden to seriously look at every and any new idea from the staff makes it possible for every employee to be involved with continuously improving how we do things.
The 50th Anniversary year offers us a chance to examine what was good about those past days, and make sure we do our best to keep them good today. These days will be determined to be "the good old days" years from now if we ourselves commit to doing the best possible job today to conduct our mission safely and to do it even when the environment is tough.
- Kenneth J. Szalai
Dr. Michael H. Gorn will present a study on the life and achievements of Dr. Hugh L. Dryden, for whom Dryden Flight Research Center is named, on May 2 at 2:00 pm in auditorium in Bldg. 4825.
Gorn has a Ph.D. in History from the University of Southern California and is currently Associate Editor, Smithsonian History of Aviation Book Series and Research Collaborator, Smithsonian Institution, National Air and Space Museum.
Gorn has written a number of books and articles, including "The Universal Man: Theodore von Karman's Life in Aeronautics" (Smithsonian Institution Press, 1992). He has written a short study of Dryden's life entitled "Hugh L. Dryden's Career in Aviation and Space," that is in the process of being published, and is currently working on a book about Hugh Dryden's life..
April 2, 1985 - Steve Ishmael is the first NASA pilot to fly the X-29 research aircraft investigating forward-swept wings, composite construction concepts, and integrated flight controls.
April 5, 1963 - M2-F1 lightweight lifting body is towed into the air over Rogers Dry Lake for the first time by a Pontiac Convertible tow vehicle with Milt Thompson the pilot. This event sets the stage for research with several lifting body designs to study atmospheric reentry of a vehicle like a Space Shuttle.
April 5, 1990 - Pegasus space booster is successfully air-launched from NASA's B-52 in one of the first successful flights of a commercially developed space launch vehicle placing a payload into earth orbit. The launch was off the California coast with a NASA-Navy payload placed in a polar orbit 320 miles high.
April 9, 1953 - The first NACA flight of XF-92A, a delta- wing aircraft to study the problem of pitching up during maneuvering caused by the delta configuration, takes place.
April 14, 1981 - 320,000 people at Edwards watch Columbia, the first space shuttle, land. Dryden VIPs number 20,000, and 300,000 are at the East Shore public viewing site.
April 21, 1993 - The F-15 HiDEC is landed using only engine power to turn, climb, and descend. Gordon Fullerton is the pilot on this milestone event.
April 23, 1992 - First flight of an X-31 aircraft from Dryden following relocation of the X-31 International Test Organization from Air Force Plant 42, Palmdale, in a DoD study of thrust-vectoring for air combat at high angles of attack.
April 25, 1967 - The first NASA flight of the XB-70A with Air Force Col. Joe Cotton and NASA research pilot Fitz Fulton at the controls. The XB-70 flights investigated the stability and handling qualities of large, delta-wing aircraft flying at high rates of speed.
April 29, 1993 - The thrust-vectored X-31 executes a minimum radius 180-degree turn - the "Herbst Maneuver" - while flying at more than 70-degrees angle of attack, well beyond the aerodynamic limits of any other aircraft.
An infrared audio Assistive Listening System is now in place in the auditorium in Bldg. 4825, the Integrated Support Facility (ISF), for enhancing communications for people who have hearing impairments.
A small battery-operated radio receiver with earphones may be used in the ISF auditorium to provide audio amplification from 30 - 18,000 Hertz. There are two types of receivers available; an extremely lightweight (1.5 oz) headset, worn under the chin or a more conventional headphone type, that can be worn with hearing aids in the ear. Both have volume controls and are capable of a 120dB audio output for seven hours.
An infrared system operates on the wavelengths of light just below those that are visible to the eye. It comprises three sections; the modulator, the emitter, and the receiver. The advantage to using infrared technology is that it is free from interference from outside sources such as radio signals.
The Assistive Listening System was installed in compliance with the federal, Americans with Disability Act of 1992, which says under Title 2 and 3, government agencies and places of public accommodation must provide auxiliary aids or services not only to employees, but to customers and guests as well. Reasonable accommondations and auxiliary aids include the use of an Assistive Listening System.
Those persons who wish to use the equipment may contact an audio technician.
by Lynn Corzine - Science Writer
Imagine being able to fly at an altitude of 79,000 feet traveling 2,000 mph and not even being strapped into an aircraft seat. On March 20, here at Dryden onboard the SR-71, Travelmate Bear accompanied NASA research pilot, Ed Schneider, and accomplished that feat.
Travelmate Bear traveled 1,800 miles in one hour and 20 minutes during the research flight. He flew from Edwards Air Force Base over the states of Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, Idaho and California. Upon landing, he was joined by Schneider and SR-71 Reconnaissance Systems Operator (RSO) Marta Bohn-Meyer, for a group photo in front of the plane.
On March 9, prior to the SR-71 flight, Travelmate Bear flew a research mission with Schneider in an F-18 aircraft to San Antonio, Tx., and returned to Dryden on March 10.
"Bill" the Travelmate Bear came from Mrs. Jaffe's third grade class in Winchester, Mass., as part of a class project to learn more about geography. The idea is for the bear to be passed from traveler to traveler and have postcards and souvenirs placed in the "kit" with the bear. Travelmate Bear also has a journal with entries from several individuals and their personal accounts of the many interesting places they have traveled themselves.
Before arriving at Dryden, Travelmate Bear first went to Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fl., and then to Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston, Tx. Although Bill was not able to fly aboard a Space Shuttle Mission, astronaut Story Musgrave wrote a note in the journal about his experience aboard the shuttle and described how the "coral in the South Pacific surrounding the volcanic islands is glorious."
Travelmate Bear will be returning to Ambrose School with several momentos from his trip. A commemorative certificate documenting his SR-71 flight along with commemorative coins, mission decals and postcards are just a few of the items he will be returning with. The class will read the journal entries and hopefully be able to have the benefit of travel without even having left their seats.
By Lynn Corzine - Science Writer
A modified Russian supersonic passenger jet rolled out of its hangar on March 17 to symbolize the start of a joint six-month flight research program between NASA, a U.S. industry team and the Russian aerospace industry.
The Russian Tupolev Design Bureau, Tu-144LL, a supersonic flying laboratory, will carry experiments in support of NASA's High-Speed Research (HRS) program. The HRS program, begun in 1990, teams NASA with U.S. industry to conduct research on technology that may allow the future development of a new High-Speed Civil Transport (HSCT) at the turn of the century. The U.S. industry team for the Tu- 144 project is led by Boeing with support from McDonnell Douglas, Rockwell, Pratt & Whitney and General Electric.
The Tu-144LL project was enabled by an agreement signed in June 1993 in Vancouver, Canada, by Vice-President Gore and Russian Prime Minister Vicktor Chernomyrdin. This is the most significant joint aeronautics program to date between the two countries.
"Using the Tu-144LL is a perfect fit between our needs and their capabilities. It's a model for cooperative technology programs with Russia," said Alliance Development Office director Louis J. Williams. "This effort will provide up-to-date information on the "real world" conditions that a supersonic airliner operates in -- data we wouldn't otherwise be able to obtain easily."
The project calls for the Russian-made aircraft to make 32 flights in six months beginning this spring. All flights will be in Russia. Six NASA/U.S. industry experiments will be flown at various times throughout the period. Two more experiments will be conducted on the ground using a Tu-144 engine.
The Tu-144 can fly at Mach 2.3, or 2.3 times the speed of sound -- approximately 1,500 mph. Its speed and availability make it the perfect vehicle for NASA to conduct studies of high-temperature structures and materials, acoustics, supersonic aerodynamics and supersonic propulsion.
To prepare the Tu-144 for flight, its original engines were removed in favor of larger and new NK-321 augmented turbofan engines, originally produced for the Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack bomber. The engines are one of the many upgrades and modifications. The airliner's passenger seats were removed to make room for the experiments' instrumentation and data collection. The work is being done by the Tupolev Design Bureau, which developed the Tu-144. All Tu-144LL flights will originate from the Zhukovsky Airfield in Russia.
A total of 17 Tu-144s were manufactured, including a prototype and five "D" models. The aircraft chosen for the flight test program is one of the D models, which have slightly different specifications than a production model. The world's first supersonic transport flight was made by a Tu-144 prototype on Dec. 31, 1968. The sleek, needle-nosed aircraft was originally designed for service in the Russian airline industry. A Tu-144 first flew passengers on a flight from Moscow to Alma-Ala, Kazakhstan, on Nov. 1, 1977.
As envisioned by NASA's HSR program, the next generation HSCT would fly 300 passengers at 2.4 times the speed of sound -- crossing the Pacific or Atlantic in less than half the time presently required on modern subsonic, wide-bodied jets -- at an affordable ticket price, estimated at less than 20 percent above comparable subsonic flights, and be environmentally friendly. The technology to make the HSCT possible is being developed by an unprecedented teaming of major U.S. aerospace companies in the multi-year HSR program.
The NASA HSR team is led by the HSR Program Office, located at Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va., and is supported by Dryden, Ames and Lewis Research Centers. The major U.S. corporate partners in the HSR program are Boeing Commercial Airplane Group, McDonnell Douglas Aerospace, Rockwell North American Aircraft Div., General Electric Aircraft Engines and Pratt & Whitney.
More than 1700 students, in 27 schools around the Antelope Valley, and including Tehachapi, added to their knowledge with the participation of 22 men and women from Dryden who took part in National Engineers Week activities in February.
The local observance of National Engineers Week coincided with similar activities across the nation during the week of Feb. 20 - 23. It was the fifth consecutive year that Dryden engineers took part in the formal program by speaking to students in their classrooms about the importance of engineering, how it influences the lives of people everywhere, and in what important ways their studies are linked to their potential successes in the future.
The Dryden effort this year sent speakers to 10 high schools, 10 middle/junior high schools, and six elementary schools, with some of the speakers talking to traditional size classrooms of 30 to 35, and others speaking to assembled groups of up to 120 students.
Participating this year, and the schools at which they spoke were:
Antelope Valley High School District - Vicki Regenie, Antelope Valley High School; Jack Ehernberger, Lancaster High School; Ben Pearson, Palmdale High School; Jenny Baer-Riedhart, Quartz Hill High School; Carol Reukauf, Desert Winds High School; Tony Ginn, Highland High School; Jim Rose, Littlerock High School.
Eastside School District - Joe Pahle, Cole Middle School.
Keppel School District - Paul Reukauf, Almondale Middle School; Dave Wagner, Lake Los Angeles School.
Lancaster School District - Brent Cobleigh, Piute Middle School.
Palmdale School District - Vince Chacon, Buena Vista Elementary; Donna Knighton, Cactus Elementary School.
Mojave School District - Roy Tryon, California City Middle School; Mike Kehoe, Joshua Middle School.
Muroc School District - Richard McGrath, Desert High School; Bob Stambovsky, Boron High School.
Southern Kern School District - Kelly Morger and Vic Bender, Tropico Middle School.
Tehachapi School District - Cam Martin, Tompkins Elementary School, Golden Hills Elementary School and Jacobson Junior High School; Darlene Mosser-Kerner, Monroe High School; Vance Brand, Cummings Valley Elementary School.
Private Schools - Ken Szalai, Grace Lutheran School; Mike Kehoe, Desert Christian School; Darlene Mosser-Kerner, Tehachapi Christian School.
The nationwide Engineers Week program began in 1951 and coincides with the birth anniversary of George Washington, a civil engineer before becoming a colonial leader and the nation's first president.
April 20 - Ramona Pageant trip has been cancelled.
May 18 - Temecula Wine Country: We will stop at Audrys for lunch. Other wine tasting: Temecula Crest, Van Roekel Vineyards, Thortons. Cost per person is $25.00. Bus leaves Lancaster Park and Ride at 6:45 a.m.
June 9 - Baseball (Dodgers vs. Reds): Camera Day! Cost per person is $11.00. Bus leaves Lancaster City Park and Ride at 10:15 a.m.
June 19 - 20 - Pizza Nights (Graziano's in Mojave): Tickets are $7.50 per pizza. Price includes an extra large pizza with two toppings plus a beverage (either a pitcher of beer or soft drink, or a carafe of wine). Limit is two pizzas per family. Time is from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Note: The employee Services Trailer hours are Monday through Thursday 6 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and on Friday 7:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.
See Joan in the Employee Services trailer or call ext. 3685 for more information.
Donald Hoppe, a Logistics expediter for Lockheed at Dryden, recently received a Space Flight Awareness Award for his exceptional performance during the period of Jan. 17 through April 13, 1995, when four processing operations took place.
The first was the unscheduled landing of Discovery at Edwards; the second was the Orbiter Lifting Fixture (OLF) load test and validation; the third was another unscheduled shuttle landing, this time of the Endeavour, at Edwards. The last was the return of the orbiter Columbia to Kennedy Space Center following modifications at Palmdale.
These operations required an enormous amount of equipment to be moved to support each operation. Hoppe is credited with accurately generating all the paperwork required to move this equipment, as well as personally loading and unloading most of the equipment.
Hoppe began his Dryden career in 1976 when he worked in logistics and transportation for Serv-Air, which later became Smith Engineering. In 1984 he transferred to Lockheed and has worked in the shuttle area since. On March 15 Hoppe celebrated 20 years at Dryden.
Retired NASA employee, William "Bill" LePage passed away on February 17, at the age of 72, in Juniper Hills. Private services were recently held.
LePage was employed at Dryden from 1951 until retiring in 1976. Some of the projects he worked on included the M2-F2, M2-F3, the X- 15 and the A5A Vigilante.
LePage is survived by his wife of 52 years, Pauline, and a daughter, Candace LePage.
NASA Dryden employees Frank W. (Bill) Burcham, Glenn B. Gilyard, James F. Stewart, Charles G. (Gordon) Fullerton, along with NASA Ames employee Joseph L. Conley, have been selected collectively as NASA's 1995 National Award Nominee and will be entered in the Intellectual Property Owners National Award competition for the Engines-Only Flight Control System, U.S. Patent 5,330,131 issued on July 19, 1994.
The Engines-Only Flight Control system is a computer assisted engine control system that enables a pilot to land a plane safely when normal control surfaces such as elevators, rudders, and ailerons are disabled. Originally started from a sketch made by Bill Burcham on an airline napkin during a flight to St. Louis in 1989, the idea met with a lot of skepticism. The first flight was made in a Dryden F-15 on April 21, 1993, landed by Gordon Fullerton without the use of any flight controls.
On Nov. 30, 1995, NASA concluded successful flight testing using a McDonnel Douglas MD-11 transport aircraft equipped with the invention.
Although a winner was not selected this year for the NASA Commercial Invention of the Year Award, the "Engines-Only Flight Control System" will be given the same recognition the Commercial Invention of the Year Award usually receives. The inventors will be honored at a NASA Headquarters ceremony in the near future, where they will each receive an award check and certificate.
by Gray Creech - Science Writer
The award for the record altitude for solar-powered flight set by the Pathfinder aircraft was presented on March 11 by the National Aeronautic Association (NAA) at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC.
Jennifer Baer-Reidhart, Project Manager for the program at Dryden received the award on behalf of NASA and AeroVironment, Inc., builder and operator of the aircraft. The award was for one of the "Ten Most Memorable Record Flights" of 1995.
Pathfinder, an unpiloted, remotely-controlled aircraft which uses the Sun's energy to power it's engines, reached the record altitude for a solar-powered aircraft of 50,567 feet during a 12-hour flight on September 11, 1995. Maximum altitude was reached at about 3:30 p.m. PDT. Altitude was limited because of available sunlight for solar cell operations and the aircraft's ability to convert the power into electrical energy to power the six motors.
The all-wing aircraft, weighing less than 600 pounds, is being evaluated by a NASA-industry alliance in a program to develop technologies necessary to operate unpiloted aircraft at altitudes up to 100,000 feet on environmental sampling missions lasting up to a week or more. The evaluation program is called ERAST -- Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology -- and is part of NASA's Office of Aeronautics and Mission to Planet Earth effort to study and protect the environment. NASA and AeroVironment, Inc. of Monrovia, Calif., cooperated to accomplish the flight, the first in a series of high altitude tests of the Pathfinder.
Previous holder of the solar aircraft record of 14,000 feet was the Solar Challenger, also built by AeroVironment. The company also developed the human-powered Gossamer Albatross lightweight aircraft.
"The Pathfinder flight demonstrated the viability of solar technology for high altitude unpiloted aircraft and cleared a path towards the environmental research aircraft of the twenty-first century," said Jenny Baer-Reidhart. "The altitude achievement was a major milestone for the program and also demonstrated the capability of the vehicle to carry scientific payloads and other experiments into the stratosphere."
During the flight, which began at 9:29 a.m. PDT on Rogers Dry Lakebed at Edwards, Pathfinder was carrying four small payloads: a device designed by NASA Ames Research Center, Mountain View, Calif., to collect the aerosol-size data; a solar cell calibration computer from NASA Lewis Research Center, Cleveland, Oh.; a Navy communications relay unit; and a strain gage package to collect data on Pathfinder's composite structure.
Thank you to Bill Dana for keeping my facts straight in the X-Press.
In the March issue on page one, in the F-104 photo caption, I printed that the F-104 research aircraft flew at Dryden from 1975 to 1994. In fact, Dryden flew F-104s from 1956 to 1994. Dryden received three F-104s from Germany in 1975.
Cheryl Agin-Heathcock, X-Press Editor
Dryden External Affairs Office
NASA Dryden Flight Research Center
Edwards, CA 93523
Phone: (805) 258-3447
Email: pao@dfrc.nasa.gov
Modified: April 2, 1996