BLENDED-WING CRAFT SET FOR TESTS.Byline: Daily News EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE Edwards Air Force Base, U.S. military installation, 301,000 acres (121,805 hectares), S Calif., NE of Lancaster; est. 1933. It is one of the largest air force bases in the United States and has the world's longest runway. -- A blended-wing body aircraft developed by Boeing Phantom Works The Phantom Works division is the main research and development arm of The Boeing Company. Founded by McDonnell Douglas before the merger with Boeing, its primary focus had been development of advanced military products and technologies. in partnership with NASA NASA: see National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA in full National Aeronautics and Space Administration Independent U.S. and the Air Force Research Laboratory is expected to undergo flight tests this year at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center The Dryden Flight Research Center (DFRC), located inside Edwards Air Force Base, is an aeronautical research center operated by NASA. On March 26, 1976 it was named in honor of the late Hugh L. . With a 21-foot wingspan, the X-48B prototype is about one-twelfth the size that an operational aircraft would be, officials said. The craft was built to study the structural, aerodynamic and operational advantages of a blended-wing body, a cross between a conventional plane and a flying wing design, officials said. The Air Force is interested in its potential as a multirole, long-range, high-capacity military transport. One X-48B prototype has already undergone testing in a wind tunnel at NASA's Langley Research Center Langley Research Center (LaRC) Oldest of NASA's field centers, LaRC is located in Hampton, Virginia and directly borders Poquoson, Virginia and Langley Air Force Base. LaRC focuses primarily on aeronautical research, though the Lunar Lander was flight-tested at this facility and a in Hampton, Va. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: An X-48B blended-wing body prototype sits in a NASA Langley Research Center wind tunnel. A second craft is coming to the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base for flight tests. Boeing Phantom Works |
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