The Bell Aircraft Corporation X-1B rocket-powered research aircraft, one of the growth versions of the original X-1 series, on the bed of Rogers Dry Lake adjacent to the NACA High-Speed Flight Station.
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The Bell Aircraft Corporation X-1B rocket-powered research aircraft, one of the growth versions of the original X-1 series, on the bed of Rogers Dry Lake adjacent to the NACA High-Speed Flight Station. The X-1B offered an ideal testbed for a test reaction control installation. In November 1957, NACA technicians finished installing reaction controls on the X-1B. NACA test pilot Neil A. Armstrong made three flights in the airplane to experience the reaction controls performance. Since cracks in the fuel tanks of the X-1B forced its grounding in 1958, reaction control research shifted to the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter.1957NACA/NASA photo› X-1B Project Description