The Northrop M2-F3 was a heavyweight

lifting body A lifting body is a fixed-wing aircraft or spacecraft configuration in which the body itself produces lift. In contrast to a flying wing, which is a wing with minimal or no conventional fuselage, a lifting body can be thought of as a fuselage wi ...

rebuilt from the

Northrop M2-F2 The Northrop M2-F2 was a heavyweight lifting body based on studies at NASA's Ames and Langley research centers and built by the Northrop Corporation in 1966. Development The success of Dryden's M2-F1 program led to NASA's development and cons ...

after it crashed at the

Dryden Flight Research Center The NASA Neil A. Armstrong Flight Research Center (AFRC) is an aeronautical research center operated by NASA. Its primary campus is located inside Edwards Air Force Base in California and is considered NASA's premier site for aeronautical rese ...

in 1967. It was modified with an additional third vertical fin - centered between the tip fins - to improve control characteristics. The "M" refers to "manned" and "F" refers to "flight" version.

Development

Early flight testing of the M2-F1 and

M2-F2 The Northrop M2-F2 was a heavyweight lifting body based on studies at NASA's Ames and Langley research centers and built by the Northrop Corporation in 1966. Development The success of Dryden's M2-F1 program led to NASA's development and cons ...

reentry configurations had validated the concept of piloted lifting body reentry from space. When the M2-F2 crashed on May 10, 1967, valuable information had already been obtained and was contributing to new designs.

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pilots said the M2-F2 had lateral control problems, so when the M2-F2 was rebuilt at Northrop and redesignated the M2-F3, it was modified with an additional third vertical fin - centered between the tip fins - to improve control characteristics. After a three-year-long redesign and rebuilding effort, the M2-F3 was ready to fly. The May 1967 crash of the M2-F2 had torn off the left fin and landing gear. It had also damaged the external skin and internal structure. Flight Research Center engineers worked with

Ames Research Center The Ames Research Center (ARC), also known as NASA Ames, is a major NASA research center at Moffett Federal Airfield in California's Silicon Valley. It was founded in 1939 as the second National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) laborat ...

and the Air Force in redesigning the vehicle with a center fin to provide greater stability. At first, it seemed that the vehicle had been irreparably damaged, but the original manufacturer, Northrop, did the repair work and returned the redesigned M2-F3 with a center fin for stability to the FRC. While the M2-F3 was still demanding to fly, the center fin eliminated the high risk of

pilot-induced oscillation Pilot-induced oscillations (PIOs), as defined by MIL-HDBK-1797A, are ''sustained or uncontrollable oscillations resulting from efforts of the pilot to control the aircraft''. They occur when the pilot of an aircraft inadvertently commands an of ...

(PIO) that was characteristic of the M2-F2.

Operational history

First flight of the M2-F3, with NASA pilot

Bill Dana William Szathmary (October 5, 1924 June 15, 2017), known as Bill Dana, was an American comedian, actor, and screenwriter. He often appeared on television shows such as ''The Ed Sullivan Show'', frequently in the guise of a heavily accented Boli ...

at the controls, was June 2, 1970. The modified vehicle exhibited much better lateral stability and control characteristics than before, and only three glide flights were necessary before the first powered flight on November 25, 1970. The 100th flight of the heavy-weight lifting bodies was completed on October 5, 1972, with pilot Bill Dana soaring to an altitude of 66,300 feet (20,200 m) and a Mach number of 1.370 (about ) in the M2-F3. Over its 27 missions, the M2-F3 reached a top speed of (Mach 1.6). Highest altitude reached by the vehicle was 71,500 feet (20,790 m) on December 20, 1972, the date of its last flight, with NASA pilot John Manke at the controls. M2-F2

A reaction control thruster (RCT) system, similar to that on orbiting spacecraft, was also installed to obtain research data about their effectiveness for vehicle control. As the M2-F3's portion of the lifting body program neared an end, it evaluated a rate command augmentation control system, and a side control stick similar to side-stick controllers now used on many modern aircraft. NASA donated the M2-F3 vehicle to the

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in December 1973. It is currently hanging in the

National Air and Space Museum The National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, also called the Air and Space Museum, is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States. Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, it opened its main building on the Nat ...

along with the

X-15 The North American X-15 is a hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft. It was operated by the United States Air Force and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration as part of the X-plane series of experimental aircraft. The X-15 set speed ...

aircraft number 1, which was its hangar partner at Dryden from 1965 to 1969. *M2-F3 pilots ** William H. Dana - 19 flights **John A. Manke - 4 flights **Cecil W. Powell - 3 flights ** Jerauld R. Gentry - 1 flight
Most of text taken from NASA Dryden webpage.

Aircraft serial number

*NASA M2-F3 - NASA 803, 27 flights

M2-F3 flights

Specifications (M2-F3)

Gallery

Image:M2F3museum.JPG, Image:M2F3museum1.JPG, Image:M2F3museum2.JPG, Image:M2F3museum3.JPG,

External links

NASA Dryden M2-F3 Photo CollectionWingless Flight: The Lifting Body Story. NASA History Series SP-4220 1997 PDF
{{X-planes Lifting bodies

M2-F3 The Northrop M2-F3 was a heavyweight lifting body rebuilt from the Northrop M2-F2 after it crashed at the Dryden Flight Research Center in 1967. It was modified with an additional third vertical fin - centered between the tip fins - to improve c ...

M2-F3, Northrop M2-F3, Northrop