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| Keywords: X-29 on Runway DVIDS743017.jpg en This photo shows the No 2 X-29 technology demonstrator aircraft as it lifts off from the runway at Edwards Air Force base on a 1989 test flight The X-29 was flown by NASA's Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility later redesignated the Dryden Flight Research Center Edwards California in a program to investigate the unique design's high angle of attack characteristics and to evaluate its military utility This aircraft is the second X-29 forward-swept wing research aircraft built by the Grumman Corporation for the joint NASA-Air Force technology demonstration program The No 2 aircraft is identical to the No 1 aircraft except for the spin recovery parachute system in the tail for added safety The No 1 aircraft flew from December 1984 to December 1988 First flight of the No 2 X-29 was May 23 1989 Two X-29 aircraft featuring one of the most unusual designs in aviation history flew at the Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility now the Dryden Flight Research Center Edwards California from 1984 to 1992 The fighter-sized X-29 technology demonstrators explored several concepts and technologies including the use of advanced composites in aircraft construction; variable-camber wing surfaces; a unique forward- swept wing and its thin supercritical airfoil; strakes; close-coupled canards; and a computerized fly-by-wire flight control system used to maintain control of the otherwise unstable aircraft Research results showed that the configuration of forward-swept wings coupled with movable canards gave pilots excellent control response at angles of attack of up to 45 degrees During its flight history the X-29 aircraft flew 422 research missions and a total of 436 missions Sixty of the research flights were part of the X-29 follow-on vortex control phase The forward-swept wing of the X-29 resulted in reverse airflow toward the fuselage rather than away from it as occurs on the usual aft-swept wing Consequently on the forward-swept wing the ailerons remained unstalled at high angles of attack This provided better airflow over the ailerons and prevented stalling loss of lift at high angles of attack Introduction of composite materials in the 1970s opened a new field of aircraft construction It also made possible the construction of the X-29's thin supercritical wing State-of-the-art composites allowed aeroelastic tailoring which in turn allowed the wing some bending but limited twisting and eliminated structural divergence within the flight envelope i e deformation of the wing or the wing breaking off in flight Additionally composite materials allowed the wing to be sufficiently rigid for safe flight without adding an unacceptable weight penalty The X-29 project consisted of two phases plus the follow-on vortex-control phase Phase 1 demonstrated that the forward sweep of the X-29 wings kept the wing tips unstalled at the moderate angles of attack flown in that phase a maximum of 21 degrees Phase I also demonstrated that the aeroelastic tailored wing prevented structural divergence of the wing within the flight envelope and that the control laws and control-surface effectiveness were adequate to provide artificial stability for an otherwise unstable aircraft Phase 1 further demonstrated that the X-29 configuration could fly safely and reliably even in tight turns During Phase 2 of the project the X-29 flying at an angle of attack of up to 67 degrees demonstrated much better control and maneuvering qualities than computational methods and simulation models had predicted During 120 research flights in this phase NASA Air Force and Grumman project pilots reported the X-29 aircraft had excellent control response to an angle of attack of 45 degrees and still had limited controllability at a 67-degree angle of attack This controllability at high angles of attack can be attributed to the aircraft's unique forward-swept wing- canard design The NASA/Air Force-designed high-gain flight control laws also contributed to the good flying qualities During the Air Force-initiated vortex-control phase the X-29 successfully demonstrated vortex flow control VFC This VFC was more effective than expected in generating yaw forces especially in high angles of attack where the rudder is less effective VFC was less effective in providing control when sideslip wind pushing on the side of the aircraft was present and it did little to decrease rocking oscillation of the aircraft The X-29 vehicle was a single-engine aircraft 48 1 feet long with a wing span of 27 2 feet Each aircraft was powered by a General Electric F404-GE-400 engine producing 16 000 pounds of thrust The program was a joint effort of the Department of Defense's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency DARPA the U S Air Force the Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility the Air Force Flight Test Center and the Grumman Corporation The program was managed by the Air Force's Wright Laboratory Wright Patterson Air Force Base Ohio NASA Identifier NIX-EC89-0127-2 2009-09-23 Glenn Research Center https //www dvidshub net/image/743017 743017 2012-10-18 03 59 WASHINGTON DC US PD-USGov Aircraft at Edwards Air Force Base Images from DoD uploaded by Fæ Grumman X-29 | ||||
