National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

1 

NASA AERONAUTICS RESEARCH ONBOARD 

DECADES OF CONTRIBUTIONS TO MILITARY AVIATION 

COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS (CFD) H v 7 NASA STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS (NASTRAN) H v

– 1970s-Today – 1960s-Today 

2 GLASS COCKPIT H v

4 

8 COMPOSITE STRUCTURES H v – 1970s-1980s 

3 

5 

– 1970s-Today 

DIGITAL FLY-BY-WIRE H v

– 1960s-1970s 

INTELLIGENT FLIGHT CONTROL SYSTEMS (IFCS) 

– 1970s-1990s 

11 

9 THRUST VECTORING 

– 1970s-1990s 

AREA RULE H v

– 1950s 

10 TURBO-AE CODE H v

– 1990s 

6 LIGHTNING PROTECTION STANDARDS H v

– 1970s-1980s 

SUPERCRITICAL AIRFOIL H v

– 1960s-1970s 

12 

13 

14 

15 

SHORT TAKEOFF AND LANDING (STOL) VARIABLE-SWEEP WING 16 WIND TUNNELS H v

– 1950s-1990s – 1960s-1970s – 1930s-Today H Applies also to general aviation aircraft 

v Applies also to commercial aircraft VERTICAL/SHORT TAKEOFF AND LANDING (V/STOL) WINGLETS H v

– 1950s-1990s – 1970s-1980s 

www.nasa.gov 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) 

Starting in the 1970s, NASA began developing sophisticated computer 

codes that could accurately predict the flow of fluids, such as the flow of 

air over an aircraft’s wing or fuel through a space shuttle’s main engine. 

Those ideas and codes became CFD, which today is considered a vital 

tool for the study of fluid dynamics and the development of new aircraft. 

CFD greatly reduces the time and cost required for designing and testing nearly any type of aircraft. 

2. Glass Cockpit 

During the 1970s and 1980s, NASA created and tested the concept of 

an advanced cockpit configuration that replaced dial and gauge instruments with flat panel digital displays. The digital displays presented 

information more efficiently and provided the flight crew with a more 

integrated, easily understood picture of the vehicle situation. 

Glass cockpits are in use on military, commercial and general aviation 

aircraft, and NASA’s space shuttle fleet. 

3. Digital Fly-By-Wire 

During the 1960s and 1970s, NASA helped develop and flight test a 

digital “fly-by-wire” system to replace heavier, less reliable hydraulics 

systems and control linkages with a lighter system using a digital 

computer and electric wires. 

The system sends signals from the pilot to the control surfaces of the 

aircraft, adding redundancy and improving control. 

4. Intelligent Flight Control Systems (IFCS) 

From the 1970s through the 1990s, NASA and the U.S. Air Force 

conducted joint research on whether a flight control system built on 

an artificial neural network could help pilots recover from loss of 

control situations. 

Flight tests proved that the system—IFCS, which backs up the digital 

fly-by-wire system—could automatically and instantly reconfigure an 

aircraft to help pilots retain control. (IFCS is currently used on the F-18 

E/F Super Hornet.) 

5. Area Rule 

In the 1950s, NASA scientist Richard Whitcomb discovered several 

fundamental solutions to key aerodynamics challenges. One of the 

most revolutionary was the “area rule,” a concept that helped aircraft 

designers avoid the disruption in air flow and resulting drag caused by 

the attachment of the wings to the fuselage. 

By using the area rule, aircraft designers for decades have been able 

to make aircraft fly more efficiently at high speeds. 

6. Lightning Protection Standards 

During the 1970s and 1980s, NASA conducted extensive research and 

flight tests to identify the conditions that cause lightning strikes and 

the effects of in-flight strikes on aircraft. NASA’s knowledge base was 

used to improve lightning protection standards for aircraft electrical 

and avionics systems. 

7. NASA Structural Analysis (NASTRAN) 

In the 1960s, NASA partnered with industry to develop a common 

generic software program that engineers could use to model and 

analyze different aerospace structures, including any kind of spacecraft or aircraft. Today, NASTRAN is an “industry-standard” tool for 

computer-aided engineering of all types of structures. 

8. Composite Structures 

NASA first partnered with industry during the 1970s to conduct 

research on how to develop high-strength, nonmetallic materials that 

could replace heavier metals on aircraft. Gradually used to replace 

metals on parts of aircraft tails, wings, engines, cowlings and parts of 

the fuselage, composites reduce overall aircraft weight and improve 

operational efficiency. 

9. Thrust Vectoring 

From the 1970s through the 1990s, NASA played a vital role in developing rotatable engine nozzles that could deflect an engine’s thrust and 

maneuver the aircraft in directions other than parallel to its centerline. 

Thrust vectoring provides unprecedented maneuvering and control for 

extreme angles of attack in air-to-air combat. (It is currently used on the 

F-22 Raptor.) 

10. TURBO-AE Code 

During the 1990s, NASA developed a computer code that generates 

two-dimensional simulations of potential aeroelastic (AE) problems that 

can occur in jet engine blades. Such problems include flutter or fatigue 

that can eventually cause engine fan blades to stall or fail. 

With TURBO-AE, engineers can more efficiently design thinner, lighter, 

faster rotating blades for today’s jet engines built for higher performance. 

11. Supercritical Airfoil 

During the 1960s and 1970s, NASA scientist Richard Whitcomb led a 

team of researchers to develop and test a series of unique geometric 

shapes of airfoils or wing sections that could be applied to subsonic 

transports to improve lift and reduce drag. 

The resulting “supercritical airfoil” shape, when integrated with the 

aircraft wing, significantly improves the aircraft’s cruise efficiency. 

12. Short Takeoff and Landing (STOL) 

From the 1950s through the 1990s, NASA conducted research that resulted in an innovative wing/engine concept that significantly increased 

lift for aircraft taking off or landing on short runway spaces, such as the 

military’s C-17 transport plane. 

The system directs engine thrust to a set of external flaps to provide 

the extra lift. This externally-blown flap system also allows aircraft with 

heavy cargo loads to make slow, steep approaches and touch down 

precisely on limited runway surfaces. 

13. Vertical/Short Takeoff and Landing (V/STOL) 

From the 1950s through the 1990s, NASA led development of an engine system that could transition a vehicle from helicopter-like vertical 

flight for takeoffs and landings to conventional forward flight. 

NASA’s role in developing a nozzle design that could deflect thrust 

from the engines to change directions, called “thrust vectoring,” 

helped gain acceptance for the concept used on the AV-8 Harrier jet 

that flies in both U.S. and British military services. 

14. Variable-Sweep Wing 

During the 1960s and 1970s, NASA researchers contributed to the development of a wing that can be moved on pivots to change its degree 

of sweep. The adjustable wing proved to be exceptionally aerodynamic 

both at low speeds (the non-swept position) and at high speeds (the 

fully swept-back position). 

Testing in NASA wind tunnels produced the key breakthrough in where 

to locate the wing pivot that allowed the varied sweep positions. 

15. Winglets 

During the 1970s and 1980s, NASA studies led to the development of 

vertical extensions that can be attached to wing tips in order to reduce 

aerodynamic drag without having to increase wing span. 

Winglets help increase an aircraft’s range and decrease fuel consumption, and are in use on the C-17 military transport aircraft. 

16. Wind Tunnels 

As early as the 1930s, wind tunnels built and operated by NASA’s 

predecessor, the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics, or 

NACA, played a critical role in the design and improvement of all 

military aircraft. 

Through the decades, NASA’s expanded suite of tunnels continued to 

host valuable foundational testing in all speed regimes for areas such 

as vortex lift, maneuvering flaps performance, stall characteristics 

and avoidance, aerodynamics for low-level and high angle of attack 

maneuvers, flutter prediction and avoidance, spin characteristics and 

recovery, cruise performance and in-flight icing. 

www.aeronautics.nasa.gov 

NL-2008-10-010-HQ