Aerospace Research Pilot School (ARPS) Aircraft and Simulators

[Dynoman]

The Aerospace Research Pilot School, beginning circa 1961, was created as Phase II of the USAF Experimental Flight Test Pilot's School in order to train future US military space crews. With projects such as X-20 Dyna Soar and the MOL the USAF felt that the need for training engineers and pilots for flight test operations in spacecraft had come.

In order to conduct these courses in space flight test a number of simulators, ground-based and flight-based were developed.

 

[Dynoman]

Re: Aerospace Research Pilot's School (ARPS)

Looking for photos of the ARPS variable stability NF-106 Delta Darts that had the tail numbers 57-2519 and the other may have been 57-2529.

 

[Dynoman]

Re: Aerospace Research Pilot's School (ARPS)

Found one of them. http://www.f-106deltadart.com/lineage/572519Page.html

 

[Dynoman]

Re: Aerospace Research Pilot's School (ARPS)

Google's amazing.
ARPS 57-2529 Variable Stability Simulator NF-106

 

[Dynoman]

Re: Aerospace Research Pilot's School (ARPS)

Video of student in the reaction control trainer:

http://www.criticalpast.com/video/65675021295_Aerospace-Research-Pilot-School_Reaction-Control-Simulator_Sergeant_the-hatch

 

[Dynoman]

The ARPS static simulators:


Static Aerodynamic Simulator and the Static Spaceflight Simulator

 

[Dynoman]

T-27 Spaceflight Simulator with School Commandant Chuck Yeager

 

[Dynoman]

The variable stability NF-101 was used for a brief time by the ARPS, but due to maintenance issues was seldom used. The aircraft was replaced in the school by the NF-106.

 

[Dynoman]

The CALSPAN B-26 variable stability aircraft was introduced to the ARPS under Col. Chuck Yeager at the time (ARPS Commandant 1962-1966) and flown by the USAF TPS up to 1981.

 

[Dynoman]

Slightly better picture of the Static Spaceflight Simulator

 

[Dynoman]

Video showing the ARPS school with F-106 Static Aerodynamic Simulator (at 2:20 in the video); reaction control trainer (2:40); and development of the NF-104 rocket trainer (5:20). Video also includes video of ARPS Class III, which included early images of Gemini and Apollo astronauts before they went to NASA.

 

[Dynoman]

Progress report on the NF-104A

 

[Dynoman]

T-27 Spaceflight Simulator and the NF-104.

 

[NoBarrelRolls]

Found this great drawing of the NF-104A in Steve Ginter's book: Lockheed NF-104A Aerospace Trainer (Air Force Legends Number 204)

 

[Dynoman]

Great cutaway! Here is a photo of Chuck Yeager in the cockpit of the M2-F1 receiving instruction from Milt Thompson. Yeager was interested in the inclusion of a lifting bodies aircraft into the ARPS program as a trainer. Eventually the ARPS arrived at a trainer version of the X-24A, known as the SV-5J, which included a jet engine for takeoff and go-around capabilities.

 

[TomcatViP]

Newly released video from the Edwards Air Force Base History Office shows then Col. Chuck Yeager losing control and crashing an NF-104A on December 10, 1963 at Edwards Air Force Base.
(U.S. Air Force video edited by Christopher Dyer)

https://www.facebook.com/139549732762631/posts/2814704888580422

 

[Dynoman]

An aircraft under consideration by the USAF (and most likely the ARPS) was the Northrop ST-38. Northrop was pitching the Air Force the N-205 design, which was a modified T-38A with 75% commonality (the N-205B version had an estimated 90% commonality). The design was offered while the Lockheed NF-104A was under development. The Northrop design lost out to the various lifting body designs that were being considered in the early 1960's piloted re-entry and maneuvering spacecraft. Tony Chong's website has the broader story:
http://ghostmodeler.blogspot.com/2012/09/talons-in-space-northrops-n-205-proposal.html

 

[Dynoman]

Four OH-13E Sioux helicopters were introduced into the ARPS curriculum for V/STOL-VTOL training in February 1965.

February 23, 1965: Vertical/Short Takeoff and Landing Engineering Testing

Due to an anticipated lack of trained vertical/short takeoff and landing engineering test pilots in the Air Force, V/STOL training was documented as a new task to the USAF Aerospace Research Pilot

www.aftc.af.mil