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The X-3 Stiletto
In 1953 the Douglas Aircraft Company of Long Beach, California, produced a single copy of a needle-nose jet design, which pioneered the use of titanium for light weight and strength, and introduced new technology for aircraft tires. But the X-3 was underpowered with its Westinghouse J-34 engine, and the model never reached its planned speeds. During a test flight on October 27, 1954, pilot Joseph A. Walker performed two rudder-fixed aileron rolls at speeds of Mach .92 and 1.05, which led to a phenomenon called inertial coupling, where the heavy, high-density fuselage cannot be stabilized by the narrow wings and fuselage. Walker was able to recover control. Air Force testing lasted through 1956 at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) high-speed flight station, which was later known as the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center. In this silent, color footage, the X-3 instruments are calibrated during a preflight check, the aircraft takes off, lands with the aid of a parachute, and is trucked away across the California desert. (00:40)
Video: NASA Dryden Flight Research Center
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Comments (3)
It's good that this piece of aviation history made to the Air Force Museum in Dayton Ohio, and not White Sands as the North American XF92 did.
Posted by recrislip on August 17,2011 | 02:45 PM
My understanding is that the engines didn't have the anticipated power, so it's unfair to think less of the aircraft's design. My recollection is that the X-3 led the way in the development of very thin, short wings that allowed the design of the F-104 Starfighter.
A visit to the USAF museum at Wright-Patt will help one to understand how incredibly sleek and pointy this aircraft is, and how much of a departure it was from contemporary aircraft.
regards,
Steve Kurt
Posted by Steve Kurt on September 5,2011 | 09:23 PM
How did the pilot get into X-3 the cockpit?
It looks like the X-3 has a fixed cockpit area.
Posted by Duke Charbonneau on May 25,2012 | 09:33 AM