Patch: CV-990 LSRA (triangle)

Title: CV-990 LSRA (triangle)

Designer: Chris Nagy and Bob Baron

Year it was designed: circa 1985

Explanation or story behind the patch: The Convair 990 Landing Systems Research Aircraft (LSRA) was a specialized research and test aircraft to qualify Space Shuttle main landing gear to their maximum load and beyond (all the way to destructive failure). It was not possible to perform the test on an actual Space Shuttle without risk of major damage to the Shuttle itself, and in this role the CV-990 was an ideal testbed. The program was vastly successful, and performed tests in a realistic, fully dynamic Space Shuttle landing environment.

For more information on the CV-990, click: http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Movie/LSRA/Medium/EM-0005-01.mov