HL-10 Lifting Body

The HL-10 lifting body was flown thirty-seven times by NASA's Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, California, from its first flight on December 22, 1966, to its final flight on July 17, 1970. It set maximum speed and altitude records for lifting bodies at Mach 1.86, or 1228 MPH, and 90,300 feet. Its pilots were Bruce A. Peterson, John A. Manke, Peter C. Hoag, Jerauld R. Gentry, and William H. Dana. The HL-10 was part of a program investigating blunt-shaped vehicles called lifting bodies, work that led to the selection of a lifting entry configuration for the Space Shuttle and greatly aided shuttle designers in deciding to land the orbiter as an unpowered glider.

California · United States