This 1952 NACA High-Speed Flight Research Station inflight photograph of the Douglas D-558-I #3 Skystreak. Even with partial cloud cover the white aircraft was easy to see.
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This 1952 NACA High-Speed Flight Research Station inflight photograph of the Douglas D-558-I #3 Skystreak. Even with partial cloud cover the white aircraft was easy to see. The D-558-I reflected NACA (National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics) ideas on a transonic research aircraft. NACA engineers favored a turbojet engine, as they saw a rocket-powered research aircraft as too risky. They were also more interested in transonic speed — from about Mach 0.8 to Mach 1.2 — than in breaking the “sound barrier” for the sake of doing so. The Army Air Forces had a different approach and developed the rocket-powered XS-1, which the NACA also flew and supported, although it favored the D-558-I.May 1952NASA Photo› D-558-I Fact Sheet