Overview
- NASA’s F-15B carried a 40-inch CATNLF wing mounted vertically under the fuselage on Jan. 29 for a 75‑minute first flight from Armstrong, confirming safe handling with the test article installed.
- Test pilots executed turns, steady holds, and gentle pitch changes between roughly 20,000 and 34,000 feet to expand the envelope and assess initial aerodynamic behavior.
- An infrared camera gathered thermal data to map laminar flow in flight, providing measurements to compare directly with prior computer and wind‑tunnel predictions.
- The mission is the first of up to 15 planned flights to evaluate the design across speeds, altitudes, and conditions, following earlier modeling, wind‑tunnel work, ground checks, and a 144 mph taxi run on Jan. 12.
- CATNLF is intended to maintain smooth airflow over swept surfaces to cut drag and lower fuel burn on future aircraft, with testing carried out under NASA’s aeronautics programs and projects.