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  • Convair XF-92A

    The XF-92A was the world's first jet aircraft to fly with the radical delta-wing configuration pioneered by Germany's Dr. Alexander Lippisch. Convair used the knowledge learned from the XF-92 to design the delta-wing F-102, the U.S. Air Force’s first operational supersonic interceptor. The original

  • Form for Dropped Messages

    Note: This item is currently in storage.This standardized form for dropped messages was used by aircraft observers to quickly report enemy ground movement to friendly troops and waiting intelligence officers. The hand-written report was dropped on Oct. 5, 1918, by pilot Lt. William C. Thomas and

  • McDonnell XF-85 Goblin

    The McDonnell Aircraft Corp. developed the XF-85 Goblin "parasite" fighter to protect B-36 bombers flying far beyond the range of conventional escort fighters. The "parent" B-36 would carry the XF-85 within a bomb bay -- if enemy fighters appeared, the Goblin would be lowered on a trapeze and

  • Republic XF-84H

    The turboprop-driven XF-84H -- a joint Air Force/Navy project -- was designed to combine the speed of jet aircraft with the long range, low fuel consumption, and low landing speed of propeller-driven aircraft. The XF-84H’s modified F-84F airframe included a T-tail and a triangular fin behind the

  • Chance-Vought/LTV XC-142A

    Five tilt-wing XC-142As were built in the 1960s to explore the suitability of Vertical/Short TakeOff and Landing (VSTOL) transports. VSTOL transports permit rapid movement of troops and supplies into and out of unprepared areas. XC-142As were tested extensively by the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air

  • North American XB-70 Valkyrie

    Click here for the March 2025 Overflight Video.     Click here for the XB-70 Full Playlist The futuristic XB-70A was originally conceived in the 1950s as a high-altitude, nuclear strike bomber that could fly at Mach 3 (three times the speed of sound) -- any potential enemy would have been unable to

  • Teledyne Ryan XAQM-81A Firebolt

    Developed in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the XAQM-81A Firebolt was a high-altitude, high-speed aerial target based on the earlier liquid-fueled AQM-37A. The Firebolt set two world records for unmanned sustained flight, reaching a speed of Mach 4.3 and an altitude of 103,000 feet.Launched from a

  • Boeing X-45A J-UCAS

    The pioneering X-45A demonstrated that highly autonomous uninhabited aircraft could be used to attack opposing surface-to-air defenses (called Suppression of Enemy Air Defense or SEAD).  Begun by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the program was later managed by the U.S. Air

  • NASA/Boeing X-36

    In the mid-1990s, NASA and the Boeing (then McDonnell Douglas) “Phantom Works” built two unmanned X-36 Tailless Fighter Agility Research Aircraft to develop technology for a maneuverable, tailless fighter. The X-36s were about a quarter of the size of a potential future fighter.Though two were

  • Ink Bottle

    Note: This item is currently in storage.This is one of five items that provide a special peek into the footlocker of a World War I American soldier. 1st Lt. Carroll DeWitt McClung was a pilot with the 28th Aero Squadron, 3rd Pursuit Group. He was trained as a pilot in the Nieuport aircraft and then