The Boeing Joint Strike Fighter X-32B demonstrator lifts off on its maiden flight from the company's facility in Palmdale, Calif. Following a series of initial airworthiness tests, the X-32B, with Boeing JSF lead STOVL test pilot Dennis O'Donoghue at the controls, landed at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. The X-32B will complete a number of flights at Edwards before moving to Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., for the majority of STOVL testing. The overall flight-test program will include approximately 55 flights totaling about 40 hours.
Vertical and/or Short Take-Off and Landing (V/STOL) is a term used to describe aircraft that are able to take-off or land vertically or on short runways. Most were experiments or outright failures from the 1950s to 1970s. Vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) describes craft which do not require short runways. Generally, a V/STOL aircraft needs to be able to hover; helicopters are not typically considered under the V/STOL classification.
Below are documents pertaining to different aircraft, designs and concepts obtained under the Freedom of Information Act:
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This post was published on February 22, 2015 3:38 am
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