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X-51A completes fight test
Published: June 21, 2011 at 6:55 AM
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif., June 21 (UPI) -- The X-51A Waverider, a hypersonic aircraft, performed its second test flight at the U.S. Navy's test range in California.
The U.S. Air Force said the test of the aircraft -- built by a Boeing-led team -- provided significant hypersonic research data "despite a less-than-successful flight."
Air Force Flight Test Center officials said after a flight from Edwards Air Force Base attached to a B-52H Stratofortress, X-51A was released at about 50,000 feet. The X-51A was accelerated by a solid rocket booster but when the aircraft's air-breathing scramjet engine lit on ethylene and attempted to transition to JP7 fuel operation, the vehicle experienced a malfunction.
The hypersonic vehicle attempted to restart and oriented itself to optimize engine start conditions but was unsuccessful. The vehicle continued in a controlled flight orientation until it flew into the ocean within the test range.
"Obviously we're disappointed and expected better results," Charlie Brink, the Air Force Research Laboratory's X-51A program manager said, "but we are very pleased with the data collected on this flight.
"We have attempted two scramjet experiments now where one successfully lit and one did not. We will continue to examine the data to learn even more about this new technology.
"Every time we test this new and exciting technology we get that much closer to success."
Boeing and Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne built four X-51A flight test vehicles with the program goal of reaching Mach 6 in hypersonic flight. The next flight is scheduled for the fall.
---------- Post added at 07:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:41 PM ----------
X-51A under the wing of a B-52 at Edwards Air Force Base, July 2009
Artist's concept of X-51A during flight
The Boeing X-51 is an unmanned scramjet demonstration aircraft for hypersonic (Mach 6, approximately 4,000 miles per hour (6,400 km/h) at altitude) flight testing. It successfully completed its first free-flight on 26 May 2010 and also achieved the longest duration flight at speeds over Mach 5.[1][2]
The X-51 Waverider program is run as a cooperative effort of the United States Air Force, DARPA, NASA, Boeing and Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne. The program is managed by the Propulsion Directorate within the United States Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL).[3] The X-51 had its first captive flight attached to a B-52 in December 2009.
Published: June 21, 2011 at 6:55 AM
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif., June 21 (UPI) -- The X-51A Waverider, a hypersonic aircraft, performed its second test flight at the U.S. Navy's test range in California.
The U.S. Air Force said the test of the aircraft -- built by a Boeing-led team -- provided significant hypersonic research data "despite a less-than-successful flight."
Air Force Flight Test Center officials said after a flight from Edwards Air Force Base attached to a B-52H Stratofortress, X-51A was released at about 50,000 feet. The X-51A was accelerated by a solid rocket booster but when the aircraft's air-breathing scramjet engine lit on ethylene and attempted to transition to JP7 fuel operation, the vehicle experienced a malfunction.
The hypersonic vehicle attempted to restart and oriented itself to optimize engine start conditions but was unsuccessful. The vehicle continued in a controlled flight orientation until it flew into the ocean within the test range.
"Obviously we're disappointed and expected better results," Charlie Brink, the Air Force Research Laboratory's X-51A program manager said, "but we are very pleased with the data collected on this flight.
"We have attempted two scramjet experiments now where one successfully lit and one did not. We will continue to examine the data to learn even more about this new technology.
"Every time we test this new and exciting technology we get that much closer to success."
Boeing and Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne built four X-51A flight test vehicles with the program goal of reaching Mach 6 in hypersonic flight. The next flight is scheduled for the fall.
---------- Post added at 07:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:41 PM ----------
X-51A under the wing of a B-52 at Edwards Air Force Base, July 2009
Artist's concept of X-51A during flight
The Boeing X-51 is an unmanned scramjet demonstration aircraft for hypersonic (Mach 6, approximately 4,000 miles per hour (6,400 km/h) at altitude) flight testing. It successfully completed its first free-flight on 26 May 2010 and also achieved the longest duration flight at speeds over Mach 5.[1][2]
The X-51 Waverider program is run as a cooperative effort of the United States Air Force, DARPA, NASA, Boeing and Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne. The program is managed by the Propulsion Directorate within the United States Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL).[3] The X-51 had its first captive flight attached to a B-52 in December 2009.
