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70-484: In June 1953, North American initiated an in-house study of advanced F-100 designs, leading to proposed interceptor (NAA 211: F-100BI denoting "interceptor") and fighter-bomber (NAA 212: F-100B) variants. Concentrating on the F-100B , the preliminary engineering and design work focused on a tactical fighter-bomber configuration, featuring a recessed weapons bay under the fuselage and provision for six hardpoints underneath

140-421: A back-up electrical power supply that can be activated to enable the stick shaker in case of hydraulic failure. In most current systems the power is provided to the control actuators by high-pressure hydraulic systems. In fly-by-wire systems the valves, which control these systems, are activated by electrical signals. In power-by-wire systems, electrical actuators are used in favour of hydraulic pistons. The power

210-430: A computer in between which then controls the electrical actuators. Even when an aircraft uses variant flight control surfaces such as a V-tail ruddervator , flaperons , or elevons , because these various combined-purpose control surfaces control rotation about the same three axes in space, the aircraft's flight control system will still be designed so that the stick or yoke controls pitch and roll conventionally, as will

280-461: A control causes the mechanical circuit to open the matching servo valve in the hydraulic circuit. The hydraulic circuit powers the actuators which then move the control surfaces. As the actuator moves, the servo valve is closed by a mechanical feedback linkage - one that stops movement of the control surface at the desired position. This arrangement was found in the older-designed jet transports and in some high-performance aircraft. Examples include

350-599: A division vice president for research and development and, subsequently, as a staff vice president working with U.S. military and civilian agencies on air traffic control technologies. In 1974–1975, he worked for Hawker Siddeley as a senior vice president supporting HS146 activities in the United States. In 1977, he joined the United States House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology where he served, until his retirement in 1993, as

420-467: A loafer and used his sock to wipe a hole in the ice to spot his chase pilot. On November 20, 1953, he became the first to fly at twice the speed of sound as he piloted the Skyrocket to a speed of 1,291 mph (2,078 km/h, Mach 2.005). The Skyrocket D-558-II surpassed its intended design speed by 25 percent on that day. With 99 flights in the rocket-powered X-1 and D-558-II, Crossfield had—by

490-571: A major role in the design and development of the North American X-15 and its systems. Once it was ready to fly, it was his job to demonstrate its airworthiness at speeds ranging up to Mach 3 (2,290 mph). Because the X-15 and its systems were unproven, these tests were considered extremely hazardous. Crossfield flew 14 of the 199 total X-15 flight tests with most of these tests establishing and validating initial key parameters. Crossfield

560-463: A notebook computer. He also hinted that Burt Rutan and his Scaled Composite company were performing pioneering work for a private aircraft to take-off from an airport, fly into outer space, and return to that airport. In 2004, White Knight carried Space Ship One to its successful launch and winning of the Ansari X-Prize , the first attempt by a plane since the X-15 cancellation. Crossfield

630-434: A readily recognizable form as early as April 1908, on Louis Blériot 's Blériot VIII pioneer-era monoplane design. Generally, the primary cockpit flight controls are arranged as follows: The control yokes also vary greatly among aircraft. There are yokes where roll is controlled by rotating the yoke clockwise/counterclockwise (like steering a car) and pitch is controlled by moving the control column towards or away from

700-702: A reproduction Wright Flyer on the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers ' first flight on December 17, 1903. The training was successful, but the December 17, 2003 re-creation failed due to low engine power and the flyer's rain-soaked fabric covering which added considerably to its takeoff weight. The Wright replica ultimately flew successfully at Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina after the Centennial jubilee but without media coverage. When asked to name his favorite airplane, Crossfield replied, "the one I

770-665: A speech to a class of young Air Force officers attending the Air and Space Basic Course . His funeral ceremony was held at the Arlington National Cemetery on August 15, 2006. On September 27, 2007, the National Transportation Safety Board issued a report stating the probable cause of his crash to be as follows: "The pilot's failure to obtain updated en route weather information, which resulted in his continued instrument flight into

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840-524: A successful conclusion as he completed his final flight in the X-15. Although it had been his hope to eventually pilot one of the craft into space, the USAF would not allow it, and gave strict orders which basically amounted to "stay in the sky, stay out of space." Altogether, he completed 16 captive flights (mated to the B-52 launch aircraft), one glide flight and 13 powered flights in the X-15. The retirement of

910-501: A switch or a mechanical lever or in some cases are fully automatic by computer control, which alter the shape of the wing for improved control at the slower speeds used for take-off and landing. Other secondary flight control systems may include slats , spoilers , air brakes and variable-sweep wings . Mechanical or manually operated flight control systems are the most basic method of controlling an aircraft. They were used in early aircraft and are currently used in small aircraft where

980-425: A tactical fighter-bomber aircraft at that time, and furthermore it was assumed that air combat would be via guided missile exchanges outside visual range. In an emergency, the ejection seat was designed to blast directly through the non-jettisoning canopy and bring the pilot swiftly clear of the air intakes. In non-emergency operation, the canopy opened by sliding vertically upwards via guide mechanism, rather than

1050-631: A technical adviser on all aspects of civil aviation research and development and became one of the nation's leading advocates for a reinvigorated research airplane program. In 1986, this House Committee tasked Crossfield to be a member of the task group assigned to investigate the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster . In a 2000 public lecture, Crossfield described how the X-15 aeronautical calculations and design required computing power that filled four 10'x12' rooms. He went on to say that these very same calculations could be performed today on

1120-731: A wide margin—more experience with rocketplanes than any other pilot in the world by the time he left Edwards to join North American Aviation in 1955. In September 1954, Crossfield was forced to make a deadstick landing in the North American F-100 Super Sabre he was evaluating at the High-Speed Flight Station (the Neil A. Armstrong Flight Research Center ), a feat which North American's own test pilots doubted could be done, as

1190-598: A widespread area of severe convective activity, and the air traffic controller's failure to provide adverse weather avoidance assistance, as required by Federal Aviation Administration directives, both of which led to the airplane's encounter with a severe thunderstorm and subsequent loss of control." Crossfield received the Lawrence Sperry Award (1954), Octave Chanute Award (1954), Iven C. Kincheloe Award (1960), American Rocket Society (ARS) Astronautics Award (1960), Harmon International Trophy (1961 at

1260-707: A wing surface can change shape in flight to deflect air flow much like an ornithopter . Adaptive compliant wings are a military and commercial effort. The X-53 Active Aeroelastic Wing was a US Air Force, NASA , and Boeing effort. Notable efforts have also been made by FlexSys, who have conducted flight tests using flexible aerofoils retrofitted to a Gulf stream III aircraft. In active flow control systems, forces in vehicles occur via circulation control, in which larger and more complex mechanical parts are replaced by smaller, simpler fluidic systems (slots which emit air flows) where larger forces in fluids are diverted by smaller jets or flows of fluid intermittently, to change

1330-485: Is carried to the actuators by electrical cables. These are lighter than hydraulic pipes, easier to install and maintain, and more reliable. Elements of the F-35 flight control system are power-by-wire. The actuators in such an electro-hydrostatic actuation (EHA) system are self-contained hydraulic devices, small closed-circuit hydraulic systems. The overall aim is towards more- or all-electric aircraft and an early example of

1400-641: The Antonov An-225 and the Lockheed SR-71 . With purely mechanical flight control systems, the aerodynamic forces on the control surfaces are transmitted through the mechanisms and are felt directly by the pilot, allowing tactile feedback of airspeed. With hydromechanical flight control systems, the load on the surfaces cannot be felt and there is a risk of overstressing the aircraft through excessive control surface movement. To overcome this problem, artificial feel systems can be used. For example, for

1470-738: The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics ' (NACA) High-Speed Flight Station (later named the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center and then the Neil A. Armstrong Flight Research Center ) at Edwards Air Force Base , California, as an aeronautical research pilot. Crossfield demonstrated his flight test skills on his very first student solo. His instructor was not available on the designated early morning, so Crossfield, on his own, took off and went through maneuvers he had practiced with his instructor, including spin entry and spin recovery. During

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1540-1002: The Paul Tissandier Diploma , the Victor A. Prather Award, and the Donald D. Engen Award. An elementary school was named in his honor near his last residence, in Herndon, Virginia (a community just northeast of Dulles International Airport ). A ribbon named after him is one of the Aerospace Education Awards in the Civil Air Patrol Senior Members program. The terminal at the Chehalis-Centralia Airport (CLS) in Washington state bears his name. He

1610-654: The University of Washington in Seattle , then worked for Boeing . He served with the U.S. Navy as a flight instructor and fighter pilot during World War II . During this time, he flew the F6F Hellcat and F4U Corsair fighters, as well as SNJ trainers, and a variety of other aircraft. He married Alice Virginia Knoph (June 27, 1920 – September 23, 2015) on 21 April 1943 in Corpus Christi, Texas . She

1680-662: The White House by President John F. Kennedy ), Collier Trophy (1961 at the White House by President Kennedy in 1962), John J. Montgomery Award (1962), NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal (1993), and was named Honorary Fellow by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) (1999). Crossfield is the only American to be honored in the White House for his contributions in advancing aeronautical science—or any other discipline—more than once, let alone two consecutive years. He has been inducted into

1750-453: The 1944 work Stick and Rudder . In some aircraft, the control surfaces are not manipulated with a linkage. In ultralight aircraft and motorized hang gliders, for example, there is no mechanism at all. Instead, the pilot just grabs the lifting surface by hand (using a rigid frame that hangs from its underside) and moves it. In addition to the primary flight controls for roll, pitch, and yaw, there are often secondary controls available to give

1820-637: The F-100 had a high landing speed. Crossfield made a perfect approach and touchdown, but was unable to bring the unpowered aircraft to a halt in a safe distance, and was forced to use the wall of the NACA hangar as a makeshift brake after narrowly missing several parked experimental aircraft ("with great precision," as he later wryly joked). Crossfield was uninjured, and the F-100 was later repaired and returned to service. Crossfield left NACA in 1955. As chief engineering test pilot for North American, Crossfield played

1890-822: The International Aerospace Hall of Fame (1965), National Aviation Hall of Fame (1983), the International Space Hall of Fame (1988), the Virginia Aviation Hall of Fame (1998), Aerospace Walk of Honor (1990), The Glen A. Gilbert Memorial Award (1990), the FAI Gold Air Medal (1994) and the National Air and Space Museum Trophy (2000). Posthumously, he has been awarded the Hoyt S. Vandenberg Award,

1960-577: The LTV A-7 Corsair II warplanes, a 'bob-weight' was used in the pitch axis of the control stick, giving force feedback that was proportional to the airplane's normal acceleration. A stick shaker is a device that is attached to the control column in some hydraulic aircraft. It shakes the control column when the aircraft is approaching stall conditions. Some aircraft such as the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 are equipped with

2030-1143: The National Congress on Aerospace Education later called the National Conference on Aerospace Education (NCASE). After his death in 2006 and the shift of NCASE from an annual to biannual conference, Crossfields's daughter, Sally Crossfield Farley, moved the award to the National Aviation Hall of Fame where it is presented during the Enshrinement Weekend each July in Dayton, Ohio . In the 1991 Discovery Channel series Frontiers of Flight, Crossfield judged he "...probably had more centrifuge time, pressure suit time and pressure chamber time and all of that than any man alive." From 2001 to 2003, Crossfield trained pilots Terry Queijo, Kevin Kochersberger, Chris Johnson and Ken Hyde for The Wright Experience, preparing to fly

2100-621: The VAID was at the time a system unique to the F-107A, it is now considered to be an early form of variable geometry intake ramp which automatically controlled the amount of air fed to the jet engine. Although the preliminary design of the air intake was originally located in a chin position under the fuselage like the Vought F-8 Crusader , the air intake was eventually mounted in an unconventional position directly above and just behind

2170-451: The X-15 (due to funding cutbacks) after its record-setting Mach 6.70 (4,520 mph) flight prompted pilot Pete Knight to remark that he would have pushed it to even faster speeds if he knew it was the last flight. In his remarks to a number of aviation groups, Crossfield cited the X-15 as one of few aircraft that caused grown men to cry upon its retirement. He remained at North American as systems director of test and quality assurance in

North American F-107 - Misplaced Pages Continue

2240-523: The aerodynamic forces are not excessive. Very early aircraft, such as the Wright Flyer I , Blériot XI and Fokker Eindecker used a system of wing warping where no conventionally hinged control surfaces were used on the wing, and sometimes not even for pitch control as on the Wright Flyer I and original versions of the 1909 Etrich Taube , which only had a hinged/pivoting rudder in addition to

2310-450: The airframe. On September 17, 1959, he completed the first powered flight. Because of delays in the development of the X-15's mammoth 57,000 pounds force (254 kN) thrust XLR-99 engine, the early flights were completed with a pair of interim XLR-11 rocket engines. Shortly after launch on his third flight, one of these engines exploded. Unable to jettison his propellants, Crossfield was forced to make an emergency landing during which

2380-404: The airplane's first flight, an unpowered glide from 37,550 feet. The flight was troubled as the flight controls had not been set up properly. As Crossfield attempted to land the unfueled X-15, it went into what Crossfield described as "a classic PIO" or pilot induced oscillation. He managed to set down the X-15 on the desert runway at the bottom of one of the severe oscillations saving himself and

2450-558: The approach was the Avro Vulcan . Serious consideration was given to using the approach on the Airbus A380. A fly-by-wire (FBW) system replaces manual flight control of an aircraft with an electronic interface. The movements of flight controls are converted to electronic signals transmitted by wires (hence the term fly-by-wire ), and flight control computers determine how to move the actuators at each control surface to provide

2520-412: The area when air traffic controllers lost radio and radar contact with Crossfield's plane. The Gordon County Sheriff's department reported that debris from Crossfield's aircraft was found in three different locations within a quarter mile, suggesting that the plane broke up while it was still in the air. Crossfield was returning from Maxwell Air Force Base , Montgomery, Alabama , where he had given

2590-625: The cockpit to save him and despite being subjected to a later calculated acceleration force of near 50 Gs (although Crossfield stated in the Discovery Channel's series Frontiers of Flight that he began to have debilitating issues with his night vision after the accident) and the airplane was completely rebuilt. On November 15 of the same year, he completed the X-15's first powered flight with the XLR-99 engine. Two flights later, on December 6, he brought North American's demonstration program to

2660-468: The cockpit. The VAID system proved to be very efficient and NAA used the design concept on their A-5 Vigilante , XB-70 Valkyrie and XF-108 Rapier designs. The air intake was in the unusual dorsal location as the Air Force had required the carriage of an underbelly semi-conformal nuclear weapon . The intake also severely limited rear visibility. Nonetheless, this was not considered very important for

2730-597: The company's Space and Information Systems Division where he oversaw quality, reliability engineering and systems test activities for such programs as the Apollo command and service modules and the Saturn S-II booster. In 1966, he became the division's technical director for research engineering and test. In 1961, Crossfield became division director of test and quality assurance for NAA's Paraglider project. In 1967, Crossfield joined Eastern Air Lines where he served as

2800-586: The conclusion of the F-107A's successful test program, the Tactical Air Command decided to hold a fly-off competition between the F-107A and the Republic F-105 which was designed to same mission requirements and used the same engine. Although the competition was close, the F-105 was selected as the new standard TAC tactical fighter. The three F-107A prototypes were relegated to test flying and

2870-503: The control surfaces and linkages from damage from wind. Some aircraft have gust locks fitted as part of the control system. Increases in the control surface area, and the higher airspeeds required by faster aircraft resulted in higher aerodynamic loads on the flight control systems. As a result, the forces required to move them also become significantly larger. Consequently, complicated mechanical gearing arrangements were developed to extract maximum mechanical advantage in order to reduce

North American F-107 - Misplaced Pages Continue

2940-438: The control surfaces reducing the amount of mechanical forces needed. This arrangement was used in early piston-engined transport aircraft and in early jet transports. The Boeing 737 incorporates a system, whereby in the unlikely event of total hydraulic system failure, it automatically and seamlessly reverts to being controlled via servo-tab. The complexity and weight of mechanical flight control systems increase considerably with

3010-603: The controls of the RAF 's Avro Vulcan jet bomber and the RCAF 's Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow supersonic interceptor (both 1950s-era designs), the required force feedback was achieved by a spring device. The fulcrum of this device was moved in proportion to the square of the air speed (for the elevators) to give increased resistance at higher speeds. For the controls of the American Vought F-8 Crusader and

3080-542: The controls, made its initial flight on 10 September 1956, attaining Mach 1.03. After the successful test flight, the brakechute did not deploy, which resulted in a "hot" landing with the nose gear strut breaking. The aircraft first achieved Mach 2 in tests on 3 November 1956. It was joined by the second F-107A ( 55-5119 ), which made its first flight on 28 November 1956. It was used for weapons testing with both conventional and atomic bombs. The last prototype, ( 55-5120 ) had its maiden flight on 10 December 1956. At

3150-577: The direction of vehicles. In this use, active flow control promises simplicity and lower mass, costs (up to half less), and inertia and response times. This was demonstrated in the Demon UAV , which flew for the first time in the UK in September 2010. Scott Crossfield Albert Scott Crossfield (October 2, 1921 – April 19, 2006) was an American naval officer and test pilot . In 1953, he became

3220-452: The excessive load on the aircraft broke its back just behind the cockpit. He was uninjured and the airplane was repaired. On June 8, 1960, he had another close call during ground tests with the XLR-99 engine. He was seated in the cockpit of the No. 3 X-15 when a malfunctioning valve caused a catastrophic explosion. Once again he was uninjured as Dr. Toby Freedman , NAA Medical Director, pried open

3290-410: The expected response. Commands from the computers are also input without the pilot's knowledge to stabilize the aircraft and perform other tasks. Electronics for aircraft flight control systems are part of the field known as avionics . Fly-by-optics, also known as fly-by-light , is a further development using fiber-optic cables . Several technology research and development efforts exist to integrate

3360-724: The first pilot to fly at twice the speed of sound . Crossfield was the first of twelve pilots who flew the North American X-15 , an experimental spaceplane jointly operated by the United States Air Force and NASA . Born October 2, 1921, in Berkeley, California , Scott Crossfield grew up in southern California and rural southwest Washington , a son of Albert Scott Crossfield, Sr. (May 13, 1887 – October 21, 1954) and his first wife Maria Lucia Dwyer (March 8, 1892 – March 23, 1960). Crossfield graduated from Boistfort High School southwest of Chehalis , attended

3430-545: The first prototype flew. The F-107 was never given an official name, but was sometimes informally called the "Super Super Sabre" referring to North American's earlier fighter design, the F-100 Super Sabre. The designation "F-107A" was the only one assigned to the aircraft, though "YF-107A" is often used in publications. The aircraft is also informally called the "Ultra Sabre". The first F-107A (serial number 55-5118 ) with North American's chief test pilot Bob Baker at

3500-440: The first spin, Crossfield experienced vibrations, banging, and noise in the aircraft that he had never encountered with his instructor. He recovered, climbed to a higher altitude, and repeated his spin entry and spin recovery, getting the same vibration, banging and noise. On his third spin entry, at yet an even higher altitude, he looked over his shoulder as he was spinning and observed the instructor's door disengaged and flapping in

3570-461: The forces required from the pilots. This arrangement can be found on bigger or higher performance propeller aircraft such as the Fokker 50 . Some mechanical flight control systems use servo tabs that provide aerodynamic assistance. Servo tabs are small surfaces hinged to the control surfaces. The flight control mechanisms move these tabs, aerodynamic forces in turn move, or assist the movement of

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3640-608: The functions of flight control systems such as ailerons , elevators , elevons , flaps , and flaperons into wings to perform the aerodynamic purpose with the advantages of less: mass, cost, drag, inertia (for faster, stronger control response), complexity (mechanically simpler, fewer moving parts or surfaces, less maintenance), and radar cross section for stealth . These may be used in many unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and 6th generation fighter aircraft . Two promising approaches are flexible wings, and fluidics. In flexible wings, also known as "morphing aerofoils", much or all of

3710-438: The pilot finer control over flight or to ease the workload. The most commonly available control is a wheel or other device to control elevator trim , so that the pilot does not have to maintain constant backward or forward pressure to hold a specific pitch attitude (other types of trim, for rudder and ailerons , are common on larger aircraft but may also appear on smaller ones). Many aircraft have wing flaps , controlled by

3780-455: The pilot, but in others the pitch is controlled by sliding the yoke into and out of the instrument panel (like most Cessnas, such as the 152 and 172), and in some the roll is controlled by sliding the whole yoke to the left and right (like the Cessna 162). Centre sticks also vary between aircraft. Some are directly connected to the control surfaces using cables, others (fly-by-wire airplanes) have

3850-458: The pre-production order was cancelled. In late 1957, prototypes #1 ( 55-5118 ) and #3 ( 55-5120 ) were leased to the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) for high-speed flight research. Aircraft #1 is now in the collection of the Pima Air & Space Museum . In September 1959, with Scott Crossfield at the controls, aircraft #3 was damaged during an aborted takeoff. The aircraft

3920-426: The respective cockpit controls, connecting linkages, and the necessary operating mechanisms to control an aircraft's direction in flight. Aircraft engine controls are also considered flight controls as they change speed. The fundamentals of aircraft controls are explained in flight dynamics . This article centers on the operating mechanisms of the flight controls. The basic system in use on aircraft first appeared in

3990-598: The rudder pedals for yaw. The basic pattern for modern flight controls was pioneered by French aviation figure Robert Esnault-Pelterie , with fellow French aviator Louis Blériot popularizing Esnault-Pelterie's control format initially on Louis' Blériot VIII monoplane in April 1908, and standardizing the format on the July 1909 Channel-crossing Blériot XI . Flight control has long been taught in such fashion for many decades, as popularized in ab initio instructional books such as

4060-497: The size and performance of the aircraft. Hydraulically powered control surfaces help to overcome these limitations. With hydraulic flight control systems, the aircraft's size and performance are limited by economics rather than a pilot's muscular strength. At first, only-partially boosted systems were used in which the pilot could still feel some of the aerodynamic loads on the control surfaces (feedback). A hydro-mechanical flight control system has two parts: The pilot's movement of

4130-443: The spin. He reached back, pulled the door closed, and discovered all the vibrations, banging and noise stopped. Satisfied, he recovered from the spin, landed, and fueled the airplane. He also realized his instructor had been holding the door during their practice spin entries and recoveries, and never mentioned this door quirk. In later years, Crossfield often cited his curiosity about this solo spin anomaly and his desire to analyze what

4200-509: The typical arrangement of a hinged or horizontally sliding canopy. A two-seat version of the F-107 was proposed by North American, which seated both crewmembers under a single canopy in an extended forward fuselage, but none were built. In August 1954, a contract was signed for three prototypes along with a pre-production order for six additional airframes. Extensive design changes resulted in its redesignation from F-100B to F-107A before

4270-516: The warping-operated pitch and roll controls. A manual flight control system uses a collection of mechanical parts such as pushrods, tension cables, pulleys, counterweights, and sometimes chains to transmit the forces applied to the cockpit controls directly to the control surfaces. Turnbuckles are often used to adjust control cable tension. The Cessna Skyhawk is a typical example of an aircraft that uses this type of system. Gust locks are often used on parked aircraft with mechanical systems to protect

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4340-450: The wings. Single-point refueling capability was provided while a retractable tailskid was installed. An all-moving vertical fin and an automated flight control system were incorporated which permitted the aircraft to roll at supersonic speeds using spoilers . The flight control system was upgraded by the addition of pitch and yaw dampers. The aircraft's most distinguishing feature is its dorsal-mounted variable-area inlet duct (VAID). While

4410-770: Was also most proud of his A. Scott Crossfield Aerospace Education Teacher of the Year Award which is awarded annually at what is known as the "Oscar Night" in aviation, the Annual Enshrinement Ceremony Weekend at the National Aviation Hall of Fame held each year at the end of July in Dayton, Ohio. Crossfield received an honorary doctor of science degree from the Florida Institute of Technology in 1982. While he

4480-561: Was celebrated as a daring test pilot, he claimed that his actual profession was an engineer. "I am an aeronautical engineer, an aerodynamicist and a designer. My flying was only primarily because I felt that it was essential to designing and building better airplanes for pilots to fly." In the 23rd century of the Star Trek universe, Crossfield is honored with the Crossfield -class of starships, one of which, USS Discovery (NCC-1031),

4550-527: Was flying at the time," because he thoroughly enjoyed them all and their unique personalities. On April 19, 2006, a Cessna 210A piloted by Crossfield was reported missing while flying from Prattville, Alabama toward Manassas, Virginia , near his home in Herndon . On April 20, authorities confirmed his body was found in the wreckage of his plane in a remote area of Ludville in Pickens County Georgia . There were severe thunderstorms in

4620-554: Was going on and why it happened, as the start of his test pilot career. Over the next five years, he flew nearly all of the experimental aircraft under test at Edwards, including the X-1 , XF-92 , X-4 , X-5 , Douglas D-558-I Skystreak , and the Douglas D-558-II Skyrocket . During one of his X-1 flights, the cockpit windows completely frosted and Crossfield was literally flying blind. Ever resourceful, he removed

4690-444: Was not only involved with the design of X-15 from the beginning, but introduced many innovations, including putting engine controls of the rocket plane into the cockpit. Previously, all engine adjustments resulted from technicians making adjustments on the ground based upon results of flight profiles. It was during this time that Crossfield was part of the U.S. Air Force 's Man In Space Soonest project. On June 8, 1959, he completed

4760-985: Was not repaired and, ultimately, used for fire fighting training and was destroyed in the early 1960s. (55-5120 was also noted to be stored in poor condition in the Tallmantz collection at Orange County Airport California in September 1970.) Prototype #2 ( 55-5119 ) was not used by NACA and flown on 25 November 1957 to the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio . Data from Simone and Pace. General characteristics Performance Armament Related development Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Related lists Aircraft flight control system A conventional fixed-wing aircraft flight control system ( AFCS ) consists of flight control surfaces ,

4830-420: Was of Norwegian descent and had attended Garfield High School in Seattle. From 1946 to 1950, he worked in the University of Washington's Kirsten Wind Tunnel while earning his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in aeronautical engineering in 1949 and 1950, respectively. Their son Paul Stanley Crossfield was born in 1952 while the Crossfields resided in California. In 1950, Crossfield joined

4900-407: Was played by Scott Wilson in the 1983 film The Right Stuff . Crossfield co-authored Always Another Dawn , a story of a rocket test pilot, with Clay Blair Jr, and authored "Onward and Upward" Research Airplanes, Act II . In 1986 he created and funded the A. Scott Crossfield Aerospace Education Teacher of the Year Award presented annually under the stewardship of the Civil Air Patrol during

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