Keywords: F-18 HARV research pilot Dana Purifoy DVIDS716181.jpg en Dana D Purifoy is an aerospace research pilot at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center Edwards California He joined NASA in August 1994 Purifoy is a former Air Force test pilot who served as a project pilot in the joint NASA/Air Force X-29 Forward Swept Wing research program conducted at Dryden from 1984 to 1991 His most recent assignment in the Air Force was flying U-2 aircraft as a test pilot at Air Force Plant 42 Palmdale CA In addition to flying the X-29 at Dryden as an Air Force pilot Purifoy also served as project pilot and joint test force director with the AFTI F-16 Advanced Fighter Technology Integration/F-16 program also located at Dryden Before his assignments as project pilot on the X-29 and AFTI/F-16 aircraft Purifoy was chief of the Academics Systems Branch at the Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Prior to becoming a test pilot he flew F-111 and F-16 aircraft in Great Britain and Germany He has accumulated 3800 hours of flying time in his career The final flight for the F-18 High Alpha Research Vehicle HARV took place at NASA Dryden on May 29 1996 The highly modified F-18 airplane flew 383 flights over a nine year period and demonstrated concepts that greatly increase fighter maneuverability Among concepts proven in the aircraft is the use of paddles to direct jet engine exhaust in cases of extreme altitudes where conventional control surfaces lose effectiveness Another concept developed by NASA Langley Research Center is a deployable wing-like surface installed on the nose of the aircraft for increased right and left yaw control on nose-high flight angles NASA Identifier NIX-EC94-43599-1 2009-09-24 Glenn Research Center https //www dvidshub net/image/716181 716181 2012-10-10 18 02 WASHINGTON DC US PD-USGov Langley Research Center Images from DoD uploaded by Fæ |