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EDWARDS AFB - More than 100,000 people streamed into Edwards Air Force Base Saturday to join in a celebration of aviation and flight test history during Flight Test Nation 2009, the base's open house and air show. "WHAT A SIGHT - The Warbirds demonstration included pyrotechnics Saturday at Edwards Air Force Base Flight Test Nation 2009 Air Show and Open House. Participating planes included the B-52, B-17, P-51 and P-38." MOLLY HAUXWELL/Valley Press

EDWARDS AFB - A veteran Lockheed Martin test pilot died in an F-22A crash after nearly losing consciousness during a high-speed, high-g test maneuver, according to an Air Force accident investigation report released Friday. The $140 million jet, assigned to Edward Air Force Base's 412th Flight Test Wing, crashed during a mission to test the effects of carrying weapons on the aircraft's performance. These tests involved a series of high-speed, high-performance maneuvers in which the pilot experienced several times the force of gravity. The accident investigation concluded that Cooley experienced such disorientation brought on by the high g-forces, and recovered...

EDWARDS AFB - Some 120 representatives of solar energy firms turned out Tuesday to learn about an opportunity to lease as much as 3,280 acres of Edwards Air Force Base property for a solar power plant. The industry day, in which participants toured the site at the northwest corner of the base and learned about the lease procedures and project requirements, is the first step of a lengthy process that officials hope will result in a utility-grade solar power plant to supply energy to the public electrical grid. The project would operate under the Air Force's enhanced-use lease program, which...

PALMDALE - As even the chief test pilot admitted Friday, the concept of a flying wing bomber, an airplane without a tail or fuselage that would be invisible to radar, seemed impossible. But the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber proved them all wrong when the batwinged wonder took off for the first time from Northrop Grumman Corp.'s facility at Air Force Plant 42 on July 17, 1989. The moment marked "the dawn of a true revolution in air power," said Dave Mazur, Northrop Grumman's B-2 program manager. "It's an aircraft like no other." The bombers - and those who designed, built...

The latest version of the Global Hawk unmanned spy plane, equipped with more sophisticated and capable sensors, was unveiled Thursday to great fanfare by builder Northrop Grumman Corp. and the Air Force at the manufacturing site at Air Force Plant 42. "There's a demand that continues for unmanned systems, and we feel we're leading the way," said George Guerra, Northrop Grumman vice president of High Altitude Long Endurance Systems and site manager for unmanned systems. "Global Hawk has really transformed itself since it began as an advanced development concept in the mid-1990s," he said. "I believe Global Hawk is going...

The first phase of testing for the rocket motor that will propel SpaceShipTwo into space is successfully completed, officials announced Thursday. Spacecraft developer Scaled Composites and rocket motor subcontractor SpaceDev completed the first test firings of the hybrid nitrous oxide propulsion system at a San Clemente test site, according to a release by commercial spaceline operator Virgin Galactic. Once operational, Space­Ship­Two will carry paying passengers as high as 360,000 feet above the Earth, offering a few minutes of weightlessness so the six passengers can float about a roomy cabin. The carrier aircraft that will air-launch the rocket-powered SpaceShipTwo, the White­KnightTwo,...

MOJAVE - The newest denizens of the Mojave Air and Space Port are an impressive sight, even for an airport accustomed to a variety of flying machines. A quartet of F-16 fighter jets - soon to be joined by a fifth - have taken up residence in a hangar located at the center of the flightline, a stone's throw from the popular Voyager restaurant. The jets form the test fleet of a new enterprise at the airport, Calspan BicycleWorks , a firm specializing in flight test and rapid prototyping. The company was founded about a year ago by Paul Nafziger,...

MOJAVE - The ear-splitting chorus of enthusiasm from more than 700 elementary school students echoed Friday across the Mojave Air and Space Port, punctuated periodically by the "whoosh" of a model rocket launch as participants cheered their entries in the Intermediate Space Challenge. The annual challenge pits teams of fourth- through sixth-grade classes in a competition to build a model rocket that reaches the highest point during launches conducted in the culminating event at the airport. Teams also are judged on their essays written on futuristic space-based businesses, banners and marketing strategy and team spirit. Joshua Middle School in Mojave...

MOJAVE - In addition to being the home for cutting-edge aerospace development, the Mojave Air and Space Port has a history as a location for filming, one it plans to promote further. Staff from the East Kern Airport District, which governs the airport, recently visited the Association of Film Commissioners International Locations Trade Show in Santa Monica. The event provides a chance for filming locations to present their wares to potential customers. "We didn't see anybody that showcased what we have here," district finance director Erika Westawski said. "We have this niche that nobody addressed." The airport offers runways, taxiways,...

MOJAVE - The unique, twin-fuselage WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft continued to expand the flight envelope with its third test flight, taking it higher, faster and for longer duration than the earlier two test flights. The aircraft is the prototype mothership for Virgin Galactic's nascent space tourism business, and will carry aloft the six-passenger SpaceShipTwo for suborbital spaceflights. In a two-and-a-half-hour test flight from the Mojave Air and Space Port on Wednesday, WhiteKnightTwo reached a maximum speed of 140 knots (161 mph) and reached an altitude of above 18,000 feet, according to a Virgin Galactic statement. The flight also successfully tested in-flight...

PALMDALE - The next step in hypersonic flight test is under development in a hangar at The Boeing Co.'s facility at Air Force Plant 42. The unmanned X-51A "Wave­Rider" is a scramjet engine flight demonstrator, expected to provide flight test data at speeds beyond Mach 6 - about one mile per second - using its unique engine design. In a scramjet - or supersonic combustion ramjet - engine, air is scooped into the engine duct, then forced through a combustion chamber, where fuel is mixed in and ignited. This produces energy, which is forced out the rear of the engine...

EDWARDS AFB - The base that first broke the sound barrier is once again pushing the boundaries of flight test, this time with sustained flight at hypersonic speeds. The Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards Air Force Base is responsible for the upcoming flight test of the X-51, a vehicle designed to travel at speeds greater than five times the speed of sound. The project takes on special meaning as no hypersonic project has made it to the flight test phase in a number of years, he said. The last one - also from Edwards - was NASA's X-43A,...

EDWARDS AFB - After a two-year hiatus, the Edwards Air Force Base Open House and Air Show returns this fall. The popular event will return in a two-day format on Oct. 17 and 18. Base officials decided against having the event the past two years while the main base runway was undergoing reconstruction. The open house and air show typically takes place in October and is one chance for the base - home to the world's premier flight test center - to open its gates to the general public and demonstrate its strengths and role in military testing and flight...

PALMDALE - Employment at Air Force Plant 42 picked up during the last six months of 2008, thanks primarily to hiring at Northrop Grumman Corp. That hiring trend is expected to continue as the company ramps up development of the Navy's unmanned demonstrator aircraft, the X-47B, and production of the F-35 joint strike fighter. "We did hit our staffing target last year; however, we're still looking to add another 500 people by the end of the year," Northrop spokesman Jim Hart said. The Air Force production flight test facility reported employment of 7,039 at the various contractor sites, up from...

LANCASTER [California] - In "The Wizard of Oz," the Tin Man sought a heart from the wizard. Lancaster High School's Tin Man already has dozens, however. The 43 members of the Eagle Robotics team, together with many more advisers, mentors and parents, demonstrate that it takes more than brains and courage to build a successful program shaping the leaders of tomorrow. It takes a lot of heart, too. The Tin Man, the team's most recent robotic creation that was unveiled to the public Thursday, is only one physical manifestation of the team's prodigious efforts. The wider effects are seen throughout...

MOJAVE - The Mojave Air and Space Port is positioning itself to receive any construction funds from a proposed federal economic stimulus package. "If they're going to throw money around, maybe we can get some," General Manager Stu Witt told the East Kern Airport District directors during their Feb. 3 meeting. The airport regularly prepares "shovel-ready" construction projects in order to take advantage of additional federal grant funds sometimes available at the end of each fiscal year. This preparation may pay off should stimulus funding come available. One project the airport has requested for several years is to construct a...

MOJAVE - The Mojave Air and Space Port's singular development planning process will be the subject of a new promotional video intended to aid prospective tenants. A $10,000 contract to produce the video was approved by the East Kern Airport District directors Tuesday on a 4-1 vote, with director Dick Rutan dissenting. The district has a precise development plan, approved by Kern County, which governs future development at the airport. By applying this plan, developers can bypass the often lengthy process of applying through the Kern County Planning Department. In effect, the airport district is its own planning department, providing...

EDWARDS AFB - Within a darkened chamber, a small, cylindrical contraption suddenly shoots aloft on a pulsing plume of flame, hovering in the air while smaller flames shoot from the cylinder's sides and send it sideways. In seconds, the flames burn out and the device falls to a bouncy landing on the netting below. The video clip looks as though it could be a rough cut of a science fiction film, but in reality it is a recent test of the Multiple Kill Vehicle-L, one of the latest weapons intended to defend against ballistic missile attack under development for the...

PALMDALE - As part of this year's celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of the B-2 stealth bomber's first flight, manufacturer Northrop Grumman Corp. commissioned a special-edition motorcycle which echoes the iconic aircraft's design. The "Stealth Bike" features details which mimic elements of the distinctive bomber, including a gas tank and front cowling shaped to resemble the cockpit and fuselage and a rear fender made from a scrap piece of titanium used for the original B-2's aft deck. The motorcycle was built by Orange County Choppers of Newburgh, N.Y., and will be featured on an episode of the cable television series...

supersonic aircraft is nearing completion at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center. The project uses the center's unique, modified F-15B to gauge the effects of changing the lift surfaces and engine nozzles on the shock waves created in supersonic flight. It is these shock waves that create the signature sonic booms heard on the ground when a supersonic airplane flies overhead. Supersonic jets are prevented by law from flying over land, except in specially designated corridors, due to the discomfort and noise of the resultant sonic booms. Quieting these sonic booms could lead to supersonic aircraft that may fly cross-country and...