X-15 #2 just after launch. Public domain image of NASA aircraft.
Description: The X-15 #2 (56-6671) launches away from the B-52 mothership with its rocket engine ignited. The white patches near the middle of the ship are frost from the liquid oxygen used in the propulsion sy... More
U.S. Air Force pilots with the 303d Fighter Squadron
U.S. Air Force pilots with the 303d Fighter Squadron discuss the capabilities of the A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft with visitors at Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo., July 10, 2019. Airmen of the 442d Fighter ... More
Hugh L. Dryden, NASA history collection
Description: Dr. Hugh Latimer Dryden, had many titles after his name in his lifetime. In 1949 he became the director of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). Dr. Dryden received many accolades... More
X-2 with Collapsed Nose Wheel. Experimental NASA aircraft photograph.
(1952) This photograph shows the X-2 #2 with a collapsed nose landing gear after landing on the first glide flight at Edwards Air Force Base. The aircraft pitched at landing, slid along its main skid and contac... More
Wing chord extension on D-558-2 E53-0927
Wing chord extension on D-558-2 Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
B-47A on ramp E53-1044. NASA public domain image colelction.
B-47A on ramp Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Scott Crossfield in cockpit of the Douglas D-558-2 after first Mach 2 ...
Scott Crossfield in cockpit of the Douglas D-558-2 after first Mach 2 flight.
High-Speed Research Station Director Walter C. Williams, NACA pilot A....
High-Speed Research Station Director Walter C. Williams, NACA pilot A. Scott Crossfield, and Director of Flight Operations Joe Vensel in front of the Douglas D-558-2 after the first Mach 2 flight.
Scott Crossfield talks to newsmen in front of NACA South Base hangar a...
Scott Crossfield talks to newsmen in front of NACA South Base hangar after his first flight to Mach 2 in the Douglas D-558-2.
NACA pilot A. Scott Crossfield next to the D-558-2 after first Mach 2 ...
NACA pilot A. Scott Crossfield next to the D-558-2 after first Mach 2 flight.
D-558-2 being mounted to P2B-1S launch aircraft in hangar. E54-1526
D-558-2 being mounted to P2B-1S launch aircraft in hangar.
Stan Butchart climbing into B-47. E54-1317
Stan Butchart climbing into B-47. Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
NASA E54-1403, Armstrong flight research center
B-47A Stratojet on ramp with pilots and crew. In 1954 after a research flight in the Boeing B-47A Stratojet Crew Chief Wilbur McClenaghan (center) asks of the pilots if there are any "squawks" that should be t... More
D-558-2 Aircraft on lakebed E54-1442
D-558-2 Aircraft on lakebed Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
D-558-2 Aircraft on lakebed E54-1441
D-558-2 Aircraft on lakebed Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
X-2 After Drop from B-50 Mothership
(1955) The Bell Aircraft Company X-2 (46-674) drops away from its Boeing B-50 mothership in this photo. Lt. Col. Frank "Pete" Everest piloted 674 on its first unpowered flight on August 5 1954. He made the firs... More
X-1E Loaded in B-29 Mothership on Ramp
(1955) The Bell Aircraft Corporation X-1E airplane being loaded under the mothership, Boeing B-29. The X-planes had originally been lowered into a loading pit and the launch aircraft towed over the pit, where t... More
X-1E On Rogers Dry Lake With Collapsed Nose Gear
(June 18, 1956) This photo was taken June 18, 1956 on Rogers Dry Lake bed after Flight 7 of the Bell Aircraft Corporation X-1E with NACA High-Speed Flight Station test pilot Joseph Joe Walker at the controls. T... More
NASA E56-2499, Armstrong flight research center
D558-2 #143 LOX jettison with P2BS in background Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
NASA E56-2666, Armstrong flight research center
B-29 mothership with pilots - Dick Payne, Stan Butchart, Joe Walker, Charles Littleton, and John Moise
B-29 #800 with X-1B attached taxi's in off of the lakebed. E58-3663A
B-29 #800 with X-1B attached taxi's in off of the lakebed.
NASA Armstrong Celebrates 70 Years of Flight Research
The X-1B reaction control system thrusters are tested in 1958 and later proven on the X-15 as a way to control a vehicle in the absence of dynamic pressure. Monroe Conner
X-15 Mated to B-52 Captive Flight
(1959) One of three X-15 rocket-powered research aircraft being carried aloft under the wing of its B-52 mothership. The X-15 was air launched from the B-52 so the rocket plane would have enough fuel to reach i... More
Dream Chaser Spacecraft Arrives at NASA Armstrong
SNC delivers Dream Chaser to NASA Armstrong posing it with the HL-10 lifting body flown the 1960s. Monroe Conner
X-33 air drop model - takeoff with mothership
Description: A radio controlled model aircraft, acting as a miniature mothership, carries aloft a model of the X-33. Dryden engineer R. Dale Reed began using model drop tests in the early 1960s to test differen... More
X-15 on Lakebed with B-52 Mothership Flyover
(September 1, 1961) As crew members secure the X-15 rocket-powered aircraft after a research flight, the B-52 mothership used for launching this unique aircraft does a low fly-by overhead. The X-15s made a tota... More
X-15 Crash at Mud Lake, Nevada. Experimental NASA aircraft photograph.
(November 9, 1962) An engine failure forced Jack McKay, a NASA research pilot, to make an emergency landing at Mud Lake, Nevada, in the second X-15. The aircraft's landing gear collapsed and the X-15 flipped ov... More
Aero Spacelines B-377PG Pregnant Guppy on ramp in preparation for flig...
Aero Spacelines B-377PG Pregnant Guppy on ramp in preparation for flight tests and pilot evaluation
NASA A-5A on lakebed., Armstrong flight research center
A North American Aviation A-5A Vigilante (Navy serial number 147858/NASA tail number 858) arrived from the Naval Air Test Center, Patuxent River, MD, on December 19, 1962, at the NASA Flight Research Center (no... More
NASA A-5A on lakebed., Armstrong flight research center
A North American Aviation A-5A Vigilante (Navy serial number 147858/NASA tail number 858) arrived from the Naval Air Test Center, Patuxent River, MD, on December 19, 1962, at the NASA Flight Research Center (no... More
X-15 Mounted to B-52 Mothership Pylon in Flight
(1965) This photo illustrates how the X-15 rocket powered aircraft was taken aloft under the wing of a B-52. Because of the large fuel consumption, the X-15 was air launched from a B-52 aircraft at 45,000 ft an... More
Lunar Landing Research Vehicle (LLRV) in flight
(1965) In this 1965 NASA Flight Research Center photograph the Lunar Landing Research Vehicle (LLRV) is shown at near maximum altitude over the south base at Edwards Air Force Base. Built of tubular aluminum li... More
NASA X-15 Pilots, Dryden flight research center
(1966) The X-15 flight crew, left to right: Air Force Captain Joseph H. Engle, Air Force Major Robert A. Rushworth, NASA pilot John B. "Jack" McKay, Air Force Major William J. "Pete" Knight, NASA pilot Milton O... More
D-558-I in flight. E67-17347. NASA public domain image colelction.
D-558-I in flight. Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Paresev 1-B in Tow Flight. Experimental NASA aircraft photograph.
(October 1968) The Paresev experimental aircraft. A normal flight was a takeoff on the Rogers Dry Lakebed at Edwards Air Force Base and a circling flight path skirting the lake edges to insure a landing on the ... More
XB-70A #1 liftoff with TB-58A chase aircraft
Description: This photo shows XB-70A #1 taking off on a research flight, escorted by a TB-58 chase plane. The TB-58 (a prototype B-58 modified as a trainer) had a dash speed of Mach 2. This allowed it to stay c... More
HL-10 in flight after launch. NASA public domain image colelction.
Photo Description: .(November 17, 1969) The HL-10 lifting body is seen here in powered flight shortly after launch from the B-52 "Mothership". When HL-10 powered flights began on October 23, 1968, the vehicle u... More
X-24A Powered Flight Drop from B-52
Photo Description: (1970) The X-24A lights its XLR-11 rocket engine and begins its powered flight after being drop launched from its B-52 mothership, seen here with high-altitude contrails streaming from its w... More
X-24A Powered Flight Drop from B-52
(1970) The X-24A lifting-body research aircraft begins its rocket-powered flight after being launched from the wing of NASA's B-52 mothership during a 1970 research flight. NASA B-52, Tail Number 008, is an air... More
B-57B in flight E71-23927. NASA public domain image colelction.
B-57B in flight Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
X-24B on Lakebed. Public domain image of NASA aircraft.
Description (November 30, 1972) The X-24B is seen here on the lakebed at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California. The X-24B was the last aircraft to fly in Dryden's Lifting Body program. Lif... More
Col. Thomas Smith Jr., 433rd Airlift Wing commander,
Col. Thomas Smith Jr., 433rd Airlift Wing commander, explains how the cargo door was blown out on the doomed C-5 flight during Operation Babylift April 4, 1975 in Vietnam . (Ret) Col. Regina Aune, Aryn Lockhart... More
NASA EC75-4724, Armstrong flight research center
Air flow testing on aerodynamic truck Public domain image of a truck, historical photograph, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Dryden Flight Research Center Dedication
Description: On March 26, 1976, the NASA Flight Research Center opened its doors to hundreds of guests for the dedication of the center in honor of Hugh Latimer Dryden. The dedication was very much a local even... More
Aero Spacelines B377SGT Super Guppy on Ramp Loading the X-24B and HL-1...
Aero Spacelines B377SGT Super Guppy on Ramp Loading the X-24B and HL-10 Lifting Bodies for Transportation to the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio
First Shuttle/747 Captive Flight EC77-6887
First Shuttle/747 Captive Flight Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster Drop Test Vehicle (SRB-DTV) captive...
Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster Drop Test Vehicle (SRB-DTV) captive flight on NB-52B
F-104B #819 flies chase on the NB-52B #008 during the first DAST capti...
F-104B #819 flies chase on the NB-52B #008 during the first DAST captive flight.
First Captive Flight of DAST Mated to B-52 - Close-up from Below EC77-...
First Captive Flight of DAST Mated to B-52 - Close-up from Below
Don Mallick in Bell 47 #822 (N822NA) EC77-8296
Don Mallick in Bell 47 #822 (N822NA) Public domain photograph of NASA helicopter, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster Drop Test Vehicle (SRB-DTV) first r...
Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster Drop Test Vehicle (SRB-DTV) first release from NB-52B
Enterprise - Free Flight after Separation from 747 EC77-8611
Enterprise - Free Flight after Separation from 747 Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Enterprise - Free Flight after Separation from 747 EC77-8607
Enterprise - Free Flight after Separation from 747 Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Enterprise - First Tailcone Off Free Flight EC95-43116-26
Enterprise - First Tailcone Off Free Flight Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Solar-powered Gossamer Penguin in flight
(July 25, 1979) Gossamer Penguin in flight above Rogers Dry Lakebed at Edwards, California, showing the solar panel perpendicular to the wing and facing the sun. The first flight of a solar-powered aircraft too... More
Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster Drop Test Vehicle (SRB-DTV) with ch...
Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster Drop Test Vehicle (SRB-DTV) with chutes open after release from NB-52B
DAST Mated to B-52 on Ramp - Close-up EC79-10247
DAST Mated to B-52 on Ramp - Close-up Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
The cockpit and instrument panel of the AD-1 aircraft. Due to the smal...
The cockpit and instrument panel of the AD-1 aircraft. Due to the small size of the AD-1, instrumentation was limited and the cockpit was cramped.
TF-104G #824 flies chase on NB-52B durng a DAST ARW-1 captive flight. ...
TF-104G #824 flies chase on NB-52B durng a DAST ARW-1 captive flight. 9/14/79
One of NASA's Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft flies over the Dryde...
Photo Description: One of NASA's Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft flies over the Dryden Flight Research Center main building at Edwards Air Force Base, Edwards, California, in May 1999...UID: SPD-DRYDEN-EC99-4500 7-10
A father’s love for his children – and the 80s
Tech. Sgt. Ryan Labadens, a product of the 1980s and a photojournalist with the Air Force Reserve's 403rd Wing Public Affairs Office, has a daugther and a son. He strives to raise them with values such as integ... More
Chief Master Sgts. Robert Wright (left), 436th Maintenance
Chief Master Sgts. Robert Wright (left), 436th Maintenance Group, and Bryan Ford, 512th Maintenance Group, stand together July 3, 2013, on the flightline of Dover Air Force Base, Del., where they first began wo... More
XV-15 tilt rotor takeoff - first NASA Dryden flight
Description: This photo shows the 1st XV-15 tilt rotor flight for NASA/Dryden at the Army contingent at Edwards Air Force Base, Edwards, California, October 1980. The former XB-70 hangar can be seen to the lowe... More
Assembling the Gossamer Albatross II in hangar EC80-12454
Assembling the Gossamer Albatross II in hangar Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft development, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Gossamer Albatross on ramp with crew EC80-12557
Gossamer Albatross on ramp with crew Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Multiple exposure image showing wing movement on AD-1. EC80-12694
Multiple exposure image showing wing movement on AD-1. Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
DAST in Flight. Last Flight EC80-14090
DAST in Flight. Last Flight Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Solar-powered Gossamer Penguin in flight with Janice Brown and Ray Mor...
Solar-powered Gossamer Penguin in flight with Janice Brown and Ray Morgan riding chase bicycle.
Air flow testing on aerodynamic truck E81-38096
Air flow testing on aerodynamic truck Public domain image of a truck, historical photograph, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
The AD-1 aircraft with its wing swept. Visible are the twin jet engine...
The AD-1 aircraft with its wing swept. Visible are the twin jet engines that powered the aircraft and the fixed landing gear.
AD-1 in flight. Flight #30. The AD-1 aircraft in flight with its wing ...
AD-1 in flight. Flight #30. The AD-1 aircraft in flight with its wing swept at 60 degrees, the maximum sweep angle.
Research pilot Richard E. Gray, standing in front of the AD-1 Oblique ...
Research pilot Richard E. Gray, standing in front of the AD-1 Oblique Wing research aircraft.
Bell-47 Helicopter #822 on ramp EC82-18422A
Bell-47 Helicopter #822 on ramp Public domain photograph of NASA helicopter, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
B-57B on ramp EC82-20732. NASA public domain image colelction.
B-57B on ramp Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Controlled Impact Demonstration instrumented test dummies installed in...
Controlled Impact Demonstration instrumented test dummies installed in plane. Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft skid after wing cutter im...
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft skid after wing cutter impact. Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft prior to wing cutter impa...
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft prior to wing cutter impact during lakebed skid.
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft fireball after wing cutte...
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft fireball after wing cutter impact. Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft in practice flight above ...
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft in practice flight above target impact site with wing cutters.
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft fireball after wing cutte...
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft fireball after wing cutter impact. Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft lakebed skid. EC84-31803
CID (Controlled Imact Demonstrator) Aircraft lakebed skid. Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster Drop Test Vehicle (SRB-DTV) mated t...
Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster Drop Test Vehicle (SRB-DTV) mated to NB-52B in snow
Daedalus Project's Light Eagle - Human powered aircraft EC87-0014-8
Daedalus Project's Light Eagle - Human powered aircraft Public domain photograph of NASA helicopter, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Daedalus - Last Dryden flight with Glenn Tremml EC88-0059-002
Daedalus - Last Dryden flight with Glenn Tremml Public domain photograph of experimental aircraft, prototype, aviation design and development, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Pegasus Engine Ignites after Drop from B-52 Mothership
Description: Against the midnight blue of a high-altitude sky, Orbital Sciences' Pegasus winged rocket booster ignites after being dropped from NASA's B-52 mothership on a July 1991 flight. A NASA chase plane f... More
Shuttle Endeavour Mated to 747 SCA Takeoff for Delivery to Kennedy Spa...
Photo Description: NASA's 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft No. 911, with the space shuttle orbiter Endeavour securely mounted atop its fuselage, begins the ferry flight from Rockwell's Plant 42 at Palmdale, Califor... More
SR-71 Takeoff with Afterburner Showing Shock Diamonds in Exhaust
Description: Shock waves stream from the exhaust nozzles of the two engines of NASA's SR-71B as it leaves the runway on a 1992 flight from the Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility (later, Dryden Flight Research... More
Space shuttle EC93-01211-2. NASA public domain image colelction.
B-52 Flight Mission Symbology on Side of Craft Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
X-31 at High Agle of Attack. Experimental NASA aircraft photograph.
(March 1, 1994) The X-31 aircraft, on a research mission from NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, is flying nearly perpendicular to the flight path while performing the Herbst maneuver. E... More
Perseus A High Altitude Remotely Piloted Aircraft being Towed in Fligh...
Description: Perseus A, a remotely piloted, high-altitude research vehicle designed by Aurora Flight Sciences Corp., takes off from Rogers Dry Lake at the Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California. The... More
SR-71B - Mach 3 Trainer in Flight at Sunset
Description: The setting sun peeks beneath a SR-71B Blackbird, silhouetted against the orange hues of the western sky on a 1995 flight from at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California. Two SR-7... More
Dryden B-52 Launch Aircraft Accompanied by an F-18 Safety Chase Commem...
Dryden B-52 Launch Aircraft Accompanied by an F-18 Safety Chase Commemorating 40th Anniversary of Research Flights
Medics from the 433rd Airlift Wing, 433rd ASTS, Kelly AFB, Texas and t...
The original finding aid described this photograph as: Subject Operation/Series: PATRIOT EXPRESS '95 Base: Kansas City Downtown Airport State: Missouri (MO) Country: United States Of America (USA) Scene Ca... More
Apex high-altitude research sailplane mock-up EC95-43311-1
Apex high-altitude research sailplane mock-up Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft development, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Theseus Take-off from Rogers Dry Lake
Description: The Theseus prototype research aircraft shows off its high aspect-ratio wing in this rear view of the aircraft as it takes off on its first test flight from NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Ed... More
B-52B Cockpit Instrument Panel EC96-43814-1
B-52B Cockpit Instrument Panel Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft development, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Dryden B-52 Launch Aircraft on Dryden Ramp EC96-43808-2
Dryden B-52 Launch Aircraft on Dryden Ramp Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Dryden B-52 Launch Aircraft in Flight over Dryden EC96-43808-1
Dryden B-52 Launch Aircraft in Flight over Dryden Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
Dryden B-52 Launch Aircraft on Edwards AFB Runway EC96-43808-4
Dryden B-52 Launch Aircraft on Edwards AFB Runway Public domain photograph of NASA experimental aircraft, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description
1997 Dryden Research Aircraft Fleet on Ramp
(July 1, 1997) A collection of NASA's research aircraft on the ramp at the Dryden Flight Research Center in July 1997: X-31, F-15 ACTIVE, SR-71, F-106, F-16XL Ship #2, X-38, and X-36. ..Image # EC97-44165-149