Eisenhower’s joint chiefs chairman toured the center to see the latest propulsion and aeronautic research advances.
Admiral Arthur Radford, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under President Dwight Eisenhower, visited the center on July 1, 1957. Lewis Center Director Ray Sharp (on the right) led a tour of the hangar and several test facilities. Afterwards Radford addressed the staff, telling them, “You and your colleagues at the other NACA laboratories have consistently stimulated us to try things we have never done before. The research airplane, the transonic wind tunnel, the afterburner, the transonic compressor, and more recently, the area rule and the concept of high energy fuel are good examples.”