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"Little Joe" NASA history collection
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Description: (1958) A photo of the X-1E with pilot Joe Walker suited up at the NASA High-Speed Flight Station, Edwards, California. The dice and "Little Joe" are prominently displayed under the cockpit area. (Little Joe is a dice player's slang term for two deuces.) ..Five years later when Walker reached 354,200 feet in the X-15, that aircraft carried similar artwork - "Little Joe the II." Walker is shown in the photo above wearing an early partial pressure suit. This protected the pilot if cockpit pressure was lost above 50,000 feet...The X-1 Program was originally designated the XS-1 for EXperimental Sonic. The X-1's mission was to investigate the transonic speed range (speeds from just below to just above the speed of sound) and, if possible, to break the "sound barrier." Three different X-1s were built and designated: X-1-1, X-1-2 (later modified to become the X-1E), and X-1-3. The basic X-1 aircraft were flown by a large number of different pilots from 1946 to 1951. ..The X-1 Program not only proved that humans could go beyond the speed of sound, it reinforced the understanding that technological barriers could be overcome. The X-1s pioneered many structural and aerodynamic advances including extremely thin, yet extremely strong wing sections; supersonic fuselage configurations; control system requirements; powerplant compatibility; and cockpit environments. The X-1 aircraft were the first transonic-capable aircraft to use an all-moving stabilizer. The flights of the X-1s opened up a new era in aviation. ..Center: DFRC.Image # : E-3363
The X-planes are a series of experimental United States aircraft and rockets, used to test and evaluate new technologies and aerodynamic concepts. They have an X designator, which indicates the research mission within the US system of aircraft designations. The first, the Bell X-1, became well known in 1947 after it became the first aircraft to break the sound barrier in level flight. Most of the X-planes have been operated by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) or, later, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), often in conjunction with the United States Air Force. The majority of X-plane testing has occurred at Edwards Air Force Base. Some of the X-planes have been well publicized, while others have been developed in secrecy. Most X-planes are not expected to go into full-scale production.
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