The six Douglas D-558 research aircraft, built as two variants, were produced for a US Navy and NACA collaborative project to investigate flight in the high subsonic and supersonic regimes and to develop means of coping with the dangerous phenomena of compressibility and pitch-up which had caused many accidents to early jets. Wind tunnels could not provide the necessary data so pilots had to risk their safety in experimental aircraft which, for their time, achieved phenomenal performance. Both series of D-558 were well-designed, strong and efficient aircraft which enabled test pilots to tackle the unknown in comparative safety. Though delayed by their innovative but troublesome power-plants, and limited by the cost of their air-launched sorties, they went well beyond their original Mach 1 speed objective and continued to generate information that provided design solutions for a whole generation of supersonic combat aircraft. Although the final stage of the D-55 programme, the USN's 'militarized' D-558-3, never happened, the Navy was able to apply the lessons of the programme to its much more practical combat types such as the F8U Crusader and F3H Demon. Supported by full-colour artwork including three-view plates of the two D-558 models and a technical view of the D-2 cockpit, this authoritative text offers a comprehensive guide to the record-breaking Navy research craft.

"Crimson test Tube", "Supersonic Test Tube" and "Flying Stove Pipe" were just some of the nicknames bestowed upon the D-558-1 over the years. Skystreak was the popular name given by the Douglas Aircraft Company. The Skystreak, sponsored by the U.S. Navy and NACA, was charged with exploring flight in the transonic region. Aircraft manufacturers had been making aircraft for some time capable of reaching the onset of transonic flight, where a phenomenon known as compressibility lay waiting. This aircraft is currently on display at the Naval Aviation Museum at NAS Pensacola, Florida.

The six Douglas D-558 research aircraft, built as two variants, were produced for a US Navy and NACA collaborative project to investigate flight in the high subsonic and supersonic regimes and to develop means of coping with the dangerous phenomena of compressibility and pitch-up which had caused many accidents to early jets. Wind tunnels could not provide the necessary data so pilots had to risk their safety in experimental aircraft which, for their time, achieved phenomenal performance. Both series of D-558 were well-designed, strong and efficient aircraft which enabled test pilots to tackle the unknown in comparative safety. Though delayed by their innovative but troublesome power-plants, and limited by the cost of their air-launched sorties, they went well beyond their original Mach 1 speed objective and continued to generate information that provided design solutions for a whole generation of supersonic combat aircraft. Although the final stage of the D-55 programme, the USN's 'militarized' D-558-3, never happened, the Navy was able to apply the lessons of the programme to its much more practical combat types such as the F8U Crusader and F3H Demon. Supported by full-colour artwork including three-view plates of the two D-558 models and a technical view of the D-2 cockpit, this authoritative text offers a comprehensive guide to the record-breaking Navy research craft.

- Provides complete coverage of the little-known Douglas X-Planes. - Includes details of the first Mach 2 aircraft (D-558-2) and the first-ever Mach 2 flight. - Covers the ill-fared X-3 Stiletto program.

The revolutionary X-15 remains the fastest manned aircraft ever to fly. Built in the two decades following World War II, it was the most successful of the high-speed X-planes. The only recently broken 'sound barrier' was smashed completely by the X-15, which could hit Mach 6.7 and soar to altitudes above 350,000ft, beyond the edge of space. Several pilots qualified as astronauts by flying above 50 miles altitude in the X-15, including Neil Armstrong, the first man on the Moon. The three X-15s made 199 flights, testing new technologies and techniques which greatly eased America's entry into manned space travel, and made the Apollo missions and Space Shuttle viable propositions. With historical photographs and stunning digital artwork, this is the story of arguably the greatest of the X-Planes.

The XB-40 and XB-41 were secret, little-known experimental modifications of the B-17F and B-24D, respectively, into heavily-armed bomber gunships sometimes referred to as “bomber escorters”. They were developed during early World War II in response to the lack of a USAAF long-range fighter aircraft able to escort and protect regular B-17 formations making the round trip from Britain deep into Germany. Using many formerly-classified documents from his large microfilm collection, William Wolf presents their previously-unpublished history. It describes in depth for the first time the politics and development and associated problems of both escorter types. Unfortunately, these “protecters” were found wanting in several ways - after the addition of guns and ammunition they became overweight and tail-heavy causing center of gravity problems and each encountered numerous delays in the development and delivery of their various armament additions and improvements, particularly the Bendix chin turret. In the end, the YB-40 participated in only 14 lackluster operational service test missions during mid-1943 before being withdrawn from service. The XB-41 Liberator never saw operational testing before also being cancelled for its poor performance. The failure of the gunship concept left a huge hole in the capabilities of the Eighth Air Force. Their failure, however, spurred the adoption of the Merlin-powered P-51 Mustang, the outstanding escort fighter that was key to Allied victory in the air war over Europe.

The D-558 aircraft were part of a transonic research program originated by NACA and the U.S. Navy. The D-558-1 Skystreak turbojet was designed in 1945 and first flew in 1947 at Muroc. It quickly set a new world speed record of over 650 miles per hour. Although it approached Mach 1.0 in level flight, the Skystreak could only break the speed of sound in a dive. The successor aircraft, the D-558-2 Skyrocket, was equipped with a turbojet and the same rocket system as Bell¿s X-1. The jet was used for takeoff and landing, and the rockets allowed the aircraft to travel into the transonic zone. The Skyrocket test program began in 1948. In 1953, Scott Cross- field bested that mark and flew into aviation history when he became the first person to reach Mach 2.0 in the plane. Originally printed by the U.S. Navy, NACA and Douglas, this book contains manuals for both of these amazing aircraft. Originally classified ¿Restricted¿, they have been declassified and are here reprinted in book form.

Half a century before the 'flying wing' B-2 stealth bomber entered service, John K. 'Jack' Northrop was already developing prototypes of a large 'flying wing' strategic bomber, which would have been the most radical bombers of their age. World War II brought a need for very long-range bombers and Northrop received a contract for a 172-ft span bomber, the B-35. Several of these were built, gradually evolving into the definitive XB-35 configuration. Testing revealed that the aircraft was invisible to radar, but engineers struggled to overcome the design challenges and several pilots were lost in crashes. While the program was cancelled in the 1950s, the concept extended into other highly innovative areas, such as the XP-56 and MX-324 Rocket Wing prototype fighters. But the greatest legacy was the first operational flying wing – the Northrop Grumman B-2 stealth bomber, which used much of the hard-won experience from the pioneering programs of half a century before.

This official NASA history report provides a history of research with the D-558 Skystreak and Skyrocket supersonic airplane at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in California. In the long and proud history of flight research at what is now called the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, the D-558 project holds a special place as being one of the earliest and most productive flight research efforts conducted here. Data from the D-558 and the early X-planes enabled researchers at what became NASA's Langley Research Center to correlate and correct test results from wind tunnels with actual flight values. Then, the combined results of flight and wind-tunnel testing enabled the U.S. aeronautical community to solve many of the problems that occur in the transonic speed range (about 0.8 to 1.2 times the speed of sound), such as pitch-up, buffeting, and other instabilities. This enabled reliable and routine flight of such aircraft as the century series of fighters (F-100, F-102, F-104, etc.) as well as all commercial transport aircraft from the mid-1950s to the present.At the symposia honoring the 50th anniversary of the D-558-1 Skyrocket's first flight in February 1948, four D-558 pilots -- Stanley P. Butchart, Robert A. Champine, A. Scott Crossfield, and John Griffith -- plus Air Force Historian Richard Hallion offered insightful comments and meaningful anecdotes that deserved a wider audience than the few hundred people who attended. To make their recollections and related documents available to such an audience, NASA is publishing this volume.The Douglas D-558-1 Skystreak and D-558-2 Skyrocket were, with the Bell XS-1, the earliest transonic research aircraft built in this country to gather data so the aviation community could understand what was happening when aircraft approached the speed of sound (roughly 741 miles per hour at sea level in dry air at 32 degrees Fahrenheit). In the early 1940s, fighter (actually, in the terms of the time, pursuit) aircraft like the P-38 Lightning were approaching these speeds in dives and either could not get out of the dives before hitting the ground or were breaking apart from the effects of compressibility--increased density and disturbed airflow as the speed approached that of sound and created shock waves.At this time, aerodynamicists lacked accurate wind-tunnel data for the speed range from roughly Mach 0.8 to 1.2 (respectively, 0.8 and 1.2 times the speed of sound, so named in honor of Austrian physicist Ernst Mach, who -- already in the second half of the 19th century -- had discussed the speed of a body moving through a gas and how it related to the speed of sound). To overcome the limited knowledge of what was happening at these transonic speeds, people in the aeronautics community -- especially the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), the Army Air Forces (AAF -- Air Force after 1947), and the Navy -- agreed on the need for a research airplane with enough structural strength to withstand compressibility effects in this speed range. The AAF preferred a rocket-powered aircraft and funded the XS-1 (experimental Supersonic, later shortened to simply X), while the NACA and Navy preferred a more conservative design and pursued the D-558, with the NACA also supporting the X-1 research.