From The Archives: NASA/Rockwell HiMAT In Flight Test

The cover of Aviation Week & Space Technology’s March 9, 1981, issue featured the NASA/Rockwell International highly maneuverable aircraft technology (HiMAT) flight test vehicle seen from beneath on its eighth test flight, shortly after it was released from a Boeing B-52 launch aircraft over the Mojave Desert near Edwards AFB in California. 

Powered by a single General Electric J85 turbojet engine, the remotely piloted vehicle was photographed near its launch altitude of 45,000 ft. 

The aircraft reached a maximum speed of Mach 0.93 and a maximum load factor of 8gs during its first eight flights. HiMAT was aimed at enabling future fighters, and tested close-coupled canards, fully digital flight control, composite materials, remote piloting, synthetic vision systems, winglets, and other technologies. 

Rockwell produced two aircraft, which logged 26 flights before testing ended in 1983. NASA photo by Robert Rhine.

See the cover and read the full issue, dated March 9 1981 | Aviation Week

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