#x-planes

[usafphantom-2]

@Google

[stone-cold-groove]

Magazine article illustration detail featuring the X-15 program and its test pilots.

[dronescapesvideos]

Martin Marietta X-24A, Northrop M2-F3, and Northrop HL-10. Lifting Bodies Experimental aircraft on Rogers Dry Lakebed, 1970

➤VIDEO: https://youtu.be/5uhLZlbnAME

➤EXTREME AIRCRAFT VIDEOS: https://dronescapes.video/Extreme

[usafphantom2]

The 50s fleet.

E-997X-3 in the center, and clockwise from left: X-1A, D-558-I, XF-92A, X-5, D-558-II, and X-4. August 4, 1953.

@CcibChris via X

[piccadilly-lilly]

Allow Me to X-Plane...

An answer to a question asked by @zumwaltlord. While NASA’s collection of aircraft contains everything from a VariEze to a Blackbird, I suspect that the focus of this ask is their series of experimental airplanes, so I shall focus on a few highlights of that program for now.

Bell X-1

The X-1, renowned as the first aircraft capable of level supersonic flight, was designed in 1945 by a partnership including Bell Aircraft, the Army Air Force (later the Air Force), and NACA (later NASA). It was propelled entirely by a LOX/alcohol rocket motor, since the jet engines of the time could not provide enough power at low altitudes. The structure of the X-1 was a rather peculiar amalgamation of airfoils that were known to be effective in different roles -- the fuselage was modeled after machine gun bullets that could travel in a stable trajectory while supersonic, but the wings had a rather conventional straight shape. While the resulting plane was predictably difficult to fly, its mission was ultimately successful -- on October 14th, 1947, an X-1 piloted by Chuck Yeager reached Mach 1.06 in level flight.

Bell X-5

The X-5 was the first swing-wing aircraft to be successfully tested. Its design improved upon that of a captured Messerschmitt prototype that had never been tested -- while the wings of the proposed P.1101 could be swept back to 45°, the X-5 design accommodated a sweep angle of 60°. However, the placement of the tail could cause unrecoverable spins when the wings were at an extreme angle, and the X-5 program was eventually cancelled. Later swing-wing aircraft, such as the F-111 Aardvark or F-14 Tomcat, retain the basic design of the X-5′s wings but incorporate much larger stabilizers.

Bell X-14

If this little VTOL jet looks eerily familiar, that may be because it consists of the wings of a Beechcraft Debonair with the tail of a T-34 attached, twin engines that provide a top speed under 200 mph, and an open cockpit. Additionally, since the engines were immovable, it employed thrust vectoring for the transition from takeoff to straight and level flight; at the time of its construction in 1957, no operational airplane had that capability. Considering the X-14′s unconventionality, it was remarkably effective -- it was used for VTOL research, pilot training, and even lunar lander simulation until it crashed upon landing in 1981. It is currently being restored by a private owner.

North American X-15

The rocket-powered X-15 was the world’s first spaceplane, surpassing an altitude of 50 miles thirteen times and crossing the Karman line on two of those flights. After being drop launched from a B-52 at approximately 40,000 feet, the X-15′s engines would ignite and burn for a minute and a half, propelling the aircraft into suborbital spaceflight and enabling it to reach velocities up to Mach 6.70 -- this is still the highest recorded speed of any manned aircraft.

Grumman X-29

This unique plane looks like what might happen if someone misread the assembly instructions of a T-38 Talon, but was actually a relatively successful experimental aircraft in its own right. The forward-swept wings (the first on any American airplane) featured an aeroelastic design that prevented them from curling upwards at the leading edge and would bend the wing downward as AOA increased. However, while the wings increased maneuverability and reduced the danger of a potential stall (since forward-swept wings stall from root to tip, the ailerons will still be effective), the canards caused extreme pitch instability that made the X-29 nearly impossible to fly manually. A triple-redundant computerized system was installed to handle the necessary attitude corrections (up to 40 per second).

Boeing X-37

We know very little about what this unmanned spaceplane actually does, but some information about its design and development is available. The X-37 was designed for the testing of scientific and surveillance systems in low earth orbit. While it is somewhat reminiscent of the Space Shuttle in its basic design, it carries no crew, is much smaller (less than 30 feet in length), and is launched within a capsule atop an Atlas V or Falcon 9 rocket; additionally, the lack of a flight deck, the V-tail, and the stubbier, differently positioned delta wings distinguish its design visually.

--

Of course, these are only a few of the fascinating and unusual prototypes that NASA has created or used over the years. The Armstrong Flight Research Center’s website provides more information on other models and experiments.

[stone-cold-groove]

North American X-15. Aurora Plastic Scale Models trading card illustration detail - 1960.

[stone-cold-groove]

The Bell X-2 experimental aircraft.

[dronescapesvideos]

X-Planes episodes: from WWII Nazi rockets to Cold War era super