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picture below.)
Hyper-X X-43A
supersonic combustion ramjet. The combustion chamber is the
polished copper box visible just below the rail of the cart. The first Hyper-X X-43A
was lost when its Orbital Sciences booster tumbled out of control
on June 2, 2001. No official announcement of the cause of the
incident has been released, but it looks like both ventral
stabilizers peeled off of the booster shortly after the ignition
of its solid-fuel rocket engine. The second vehicle should fly
next year.
Link to the NASA Dryden project page about the X-43A.
Link to the Boeing Phantom Works page about the X-43A.
Link to the Federation of American Scientists page about the X-43A.
Boeing X-45
Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV) made its first flight on May
22, 2002. Boeing intends to field production UCAVs in 2008.
Boeing X-45
UCAV.
Link to the Boeing Phantom Works page about the X-45 UCAV.
Link to the Federation of American Scientists page about the X-45 UCAV.
Teledyne-Ryan RQ-4A Global Hawk, 98-2003 of the
412th Test Wing.
Link to the Federation of American Scientists page about the RQ-4A Global Hawk.
Link to the Air Force Fact Page about the Ryan RQ-4A Global Hawk.
Although assigned to the Air Force test
program, this Bell-Boeing CV-22A Osprey carries Navy BuNo 164939.
Link to the Federation of American Scientists page about the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey.
Link to the Bell-Textron page about the V-22 Osprey.
NASA's Boeing-McDonnell-Douglas
FA-18A Hornet, N853NA Active Aeroelastic Wing testbed.
Link to the NASA Dryden Fact Sheet about the Active Aeroelastic Wing.
NASA's
Lockheed ER-2S, N809NA.
Link to the NASA Dryden program overview of the Lockheed-Martin ER-2.
NASA's McDonnell-Douglas DC-8-72, N817NA was delivered to
Alitalia as DC-8-62H, I-DIWK, Giacomo Puccini in May
1969. Its McDonnell-Douglas constructoin number is 46082. Braniff
airways bought it in January 1979 and registered it as N801BN.
International Air Leases bought it in November 1983 and leased it
to Nacelle Corporation in September 1984. Cammacorp bought it in
December 1985 and sold it to NASA in February 1986. NASA had it
converted to a DC-8-72 in April 1986 and registered it as N717NA
in August 1986.
Link to the NASA Dryden description of their DC-8.
Two X-43A silhouettes, three X-38 captive carry
silhouetes, and one X-38 parafoil silhouette have been added to
the mission tally on the side of NASA's Boeing NB-52B
Stratofortress mothership, 52-0008 since the 2000 Open House.
Link to the NASA Dryden Boeing B-52 Mothership photo gallery.
Lockheed-Martin-General Dynamics
NF-16D Variable Stability In-flight Simulator Test Aircraft
(VISTA) Fighting Falcon, 86-0048 is assigned to the Air Force
Test Pilot School.
Link to the Air Force Test Pilot School page about the VISTA F-16.
Lockheed-Martin X-35B, Short Take-off/Vertical
Landing (STO/VL) prototype of the Joint Strike Fighter.
Lockheed-Martin will produce the JSF under the designation F-35.
The conventional take-off F-35A will serve in the Air Force. The
STO/VL F-35B will serve the Marine Corps, and the conventional
take-off F-35C that will serve in the Navy will have a larger
wing for carrier operations.
Lockheed-Martin X-35B Joint Strike Fighter, 301
Link to the Lockheed-Martin page describing the X-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
Link to the Federation of American Scientists page about the Lockheed-Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
Lockheed-Martin-Boeing-McDonnell-Douglas-General Dynamics F/A-22
Raptor, 91-4006 of the 412 Test Wing.
Link to the Federation of American Scientists page about the Lockheed-Martin F/A-22 Raptor.
Link to the Lockheed-Martin Aeronautical Systems page about the F/A-22 Raptor.
Boeing-McDonnell-Douglas F-15A-18
Eagle, 76-0116 of the Air Force Flight Test Center (AFFTC).
Link to Boeing's page about the F-15 Eagle.
Link to the Air Force fact sheet for the McDonnell-Douglas F-15 Eagle.
Boeing-McDonnell-Douglas F-15E
Strike Eagle, of the 412th Operations Group.
Link to the Air Force fact sheet for the McDonnell-Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle.
Lockheed-Martin F-16B Block 1, 78-0089 of the
412th Operations Group.
F-16B Block 1, 78-0089 at Vandenberg Air Force
Base on November 11, 1980. At the time it wa assigned to the
388th Tactical Fighter Wing based at Hill Air Force Base.
Visit the Air Force fact sheet for the Lockheed-Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon.
Lockheed-Martin F-117A Full Scale
Development (FSD) Stealth Fighter, 79-10782 of the 412th Test
Wing. This is the oldest Stealth Fighter still flying. The two
older F-117s are on display at the Air Force Museum and Nellis
Air Force Base.
Link to the Air Force fact sheet for the Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk.
Lockheed-Martin U-2S, 80-1067 wears tail code
WR. The U-2S model has been re-engined with a 19,000-pound thrust
General Electric F118-GE-101 turbofan engine.
Lockheed U-2S, 80-1067 at Palmdale on October
24, 2000. It carried a little red skunk on its tail. Ice had
formed on areas of the wing that were cooled by cold-soaked fuel
remaining in the bottom of the tanks. 
Link to the Air Force fact sheet for the U-2R/U-2S.
Boeing B-52H Stratofortress,
60-0036 Tagboard Flyer was used to launch Lockheed
GTD-21B reconnaisssance drones form 1967 to 1971.
Link to the Federation of American Scientists page about the Lockheed D-21 drone.
Boeing B-52H Stratofortress,
60-0036 Tagboard Flyer.
Link to the Air Force Fact Sheet for the Boeing B-52H Stratofortress.
Link to Boeing's Fact Sheet for the B-52 Stratofortress.
Raytheon T-6A Texan, 98-3030 of the 12th Flying
Training Wing based at Randolph Air Force Base in Texas. It is
based on a design from Pilatus of Switzerland.
Link to the Air Force Fact Sheet about the Raytheon T-6A Texan.
Link to the Federation of American Scientists page about the Raytheon T-6A Texan.
Randolph Air Force Base home page.
12th Flying Training Wing page.
Boeing NKC-135E Stratotanker,
55-3135 of the 412th Test Wing.
Boeing NKC-135A Stratotanker 55-3135 at Edwards
Air Force Base on November 16, 1975. It was equipped with J57
turbojets. 
Boeing-McDonnell-Douglas C-17A
Globemaster-III, 0190 of the 437th Airlift Wing and 315th Airlift
Wing based at Charleston Air Force Base, South Carolina. Anybody
know the fiscal year for this C-17A?
Link to Boeing's C-17 Globemaster III page.
Lockheed-Martin CC-130J Hercules,
1461 of the 146th Airlift Wing based at the Channel Islands
California Air National Guard base. It will be equipped with an
Airborne Fire Fighting System (AFFS) to combat wildfires in
Southern California.
Link to the 146th Airlift Wing home page.
Link to an AeroTech News article about the delivery of the first CC-130J to the 146th AW.
SAAB SK35XD Draken, N168TP of the
National Test Pilot School.
Link to the National Test Pilot School home page.
Lockheed SR-71A, 61-7967 wears the BB tail code
of the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, but it is destined for
the 8th Air Force Museum at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana.
SR-71A, 61-7967 at the 1997 Nellis Golden Air
Tattoo. 
Link to the 8th Air Force Museum home page.
Link to more of my Lockheed SR-71A photographs.
Lockheed VC-121A Constellation,
N494TW MATS Connie. Its Lockheed construction number is
2601. It was delivered to the Air Force in December 1948 and was
retired in March 1968. Christier Flying Service Inc. bought it in
May 1970 and registered it as N9464. Beaver Air Spray Inc. bought
it in April 1979, registered it as C-GXKO and sold it to Conifair
in 1980. It was purchased by John Travolta, named "Star of
Santa Barbara", and registered N494TW in 1985 before being
sold to Vern Rayburn.
C-121A, 48-0609 in the colors of Conifair
Aviation and registered as C-GXKO at the Santa Barbara Airport in
August 1984. 
Link to the MATS Connie web site.
Link to more of my Constellation photographs.
Lockheed NC-141A Starlifter,
62-1779 Against the Wind is part of the AFFTC Historical
Foundation Museum collection. It was
the fifth C-141A constructed. It was reconfigured to be an
airborne radar test facility. It tested the radars of the F-16,
F-15 and B-1.
Link to the AFFTC Historical Foundation home page.
Grumman F6F-5 Hellcat, N1078Z of the Southern California Wing of
the CAF based at Camarillo. Its Grumman construction number is
A-5634. John Sandberg recovered it from the Fergus Falls Airport
in Minnesota in 1962. It was subsequently owned by Lloyd Nolan
and Ed Messick.
Link to the home page of the Southern California Wing of the CAF.
Douglas SBD-5 Dauntless, NX670AM of
the Planes of Fame Museum. It was built as Navy BuNo 28536 but
delivered to the Royal New Zealand Air Force as NZ5062. After the
war it was used as a wind machine by MGM Studios. Wings from
another SBD were recovered from Guadalcanal to return this
Dauntless to flying condition in 1987. It flew its first flight
after reconstruction on February 7, 1987. It is powered by a
Wright R-1820 radial engine.
Link to the home page of the Air Museum Planes of Fame.
Lockheed P-38L Lightning, NX138AM of the Planes of Fame Museum.
It was built as Army Air Corps 44-23314. It was acquired by the
Hanfield School of Aeronautics in Santa Maria, California in
1950. Jack Hardwicke of El Monte, California registered it as
N29Q in 1954. He sold it to the Air Museum in Ontario, California
in 1960 where it sat on static display for seventeen years. It
was restored to flying condition, making its first flight on July
22, 1988. It then went to the Planes of Fame East museum in
Minnesota. Bob Pond purchased it in October 1989 and registered
it as N38BP.It returned to the Air Museum at Chino in 1998. It is
powered by a pair of Allison V-1710 twelve-cylinder engines.
Link to the Edwards Air Force Base home page.
Go to the Flying
Displays of the 2002 Edwards Air Force Base Open House.
You can buy a 2020 calendar featuring my photographs of Lockheed-Martin F/A-22A Raptors at Edwards Air Force Base.
A dozen photos of Lockheed-Martin F/A-22A Raptors at Edwards Air Force Base. Raptors pictured include F-22A Engineering, Manufacture Development (EMD) Raptors, 91-4003, 91-4005, 91-4006, 91-4007, and 91-4009 of the 412th Test Wing and F/A-22A Production Representative Test Vehicle (PRTV) Raptor, 99-4010 of the 53rd Test and Evaluation Group.
Put a copy of the Lockheed-Martin F/A-22A Raptors at Edwards Air Force Base: 2020 Calendar in your Lulu.com shopping cart for $14.95.
Send a message to Brian.
Go to the Airshow Page of the Goleta Air and Space Museum.