The Propulsion Wind Tunnel Facility, located at

Arnold Engineering Development Complex The Arnold Engineering Development Complex (AEDC), Arnold Engineering Development Center before July 2012, is an Air Force Materiel Command facility under the control of the Air Force Test Center (AFTC). Headquartered at Arnold Air Force Base, ...

Arnold Air Force Base Arnold Air Force Base (Arnold AFB) is a United States Air Force base located in Coffee and Franklin counties, Tennessee, adjacent to the city of Tullahoma. It is named for General Henry "Hap" Arnold, the father of the U.S. Air Force. There ...

, Tennessee, holds three wind tunnels: the 16-foot transonic (16T), 16-foot supersonic (16S), and the aerodynamic 4-foot transonic (4T) tunnels. The facility is devoted to aerodynamic and propulsion integration testing of large-scale aircraft models. The tunnels are powered by a large compressor plant which allows the wind tunnels to run for extended periods of time. The test unit is owned by the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

and operated by

Aerospace Testing Alliance Aerospace Testing Alliance (ATA) is a defunct aerospace engineering company in the United States of America. It was the prime contractor of the US Air Force's Arnold Engineering Development Center (AEDC), in Tullahoma, Tennessee from 2003 until 2016 ...

. The wind tunnel test facility has been designated a landmark by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers because of its engineering significance.

Propulsion Wind Tunnel 16T

16T is a

transonic Transonic (or transsonic) flow is air flowing around an object at a speed that generates regions of both subsonic and supersonic airflow around that object. The exact range of speeds depends on the object's critical Mach number, but transonic ...

wind tunnel that can be configured for Mach numbers from 0.05 to 1.60. It is primarily used to test aerodynamics, propulsion integration, and weapons integration test capabilities that are needed for accurate prediction of flight system performance. The test section 16-foot-square, 40-foot long test section can simulate unit Reynolds numbers from approximately 0.03 to 7.3 million per foot or altitude conditions from sea level to 76,000 feet. The tunnel can also test air-breathing engines and rockets through the use of a scavenging system to remove exhaust from the flow stream.

Propulsion Wind Tunnel 16S

16S is a

supersonic Supersonic speed is the speed of an object that exceeds the speed of sound ( Mach 1). For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C (68 °F) at sea level, this speed is approximately . Speeds greater than five times ...

wind tunnel that can be configured for Mach numbers from 1.5 to 4.750. The test section is also 16-foot-square and 40-foot long. The facility can simulate unit Reynolds numbers from approximately 0.1 to 2.4 million per foot or altitude conditions from 43,000 to 154,000 feet. Currently 16S is in the standby state. 16S ran again for the first time in more than 10 years on May 7, 2015, after an 18 month return to service effort.

Aerodynamic Wind Tunnel 4T

4T is a

wind tunnel test unit which has a 4-ft by 4-ft by 12.5-ft long test section. Mach number capability extends from 0.2 to 2.0. The tunnel can simulate altitudes from sea level to 98,000 feet and can provide Reynolds numbers up to 7.1 million per foot.

References

External links

Arnold Engineering Development Center
(official) {{DEFAULTSORT:Propulsion Wind Tunnel Facility Wind tunnels Research installations of the United States Air Force Military in Tennessee

Propulsion Wind Tunnel 16T

Propulsion Wind Tunnel 16S

Aerodynamic Wind Tunnel 4T

See also

References

External links