EG-0030-01
An F-14 Navy Tomcat was used at Dryden in 1986 and 1987 in a program known as the Variable-Sweep Transition Flight Experiment (VSTFE). This program explored laminar flow on variable sweep aircraft at high subsonic speeds.
An F-14 aircraft was chosen as the carrier vehicle for the VSTFE program primarily because of its variable-sweep capability, Mach and Reynolds number capability, availability, and favorable wing pressure distribution.
The variable sweep outer-panels of the F-14 aircraft were modified with natural laminar flow gloves to provide not only smooth surfaces but also airfoils that can produce a wide range of pressure distributions for which transition location can be determined at various flight conditions and sweep angles…Learn more