Armstrong Flight Research Center

Armstrong Flight Research Center is NASA's 

primary center for high-risk, atmospheric 

flight research and test projects. The center 

has the facilities and requisite expertise to 

conceive, design, analyze, fabricate, integrate, maintain, and conduct disciplinary 

research, flight research, and flight test on 

modified or unique research vehicles and 

systems. NASA Armstrong’s strength is in integration of complex developmental systems.

Named in honor of Neil A. Armstrong, a 

former research test pilot at the center and 

the first man to step on the moon, NASA 

Armstrong is located in Edwards, California, 

in the western Mojave Desert. The center is 

uniquely situated to take advantage of yearround flying weather and 301,000 acres of remote area with varied topography to advance 

technology and science through flight.

For 75 years, research at NASA Armstrong 

has led to major advancements and breakthroughs in the design and capabilities of 

many state-of-the-art civil and military 

aircraft. The center demonstrates America's 

leadership in aeronautics, Earth and space 

science, and aerospace technology as NASA 

Armstrong seeks to revolutionize aviation, 

add to mankind's knowledge of the universe, 

and contribute to the understanding and protection of Earth.

NASA Armstrong's history dates back to late 

1946, when 13 engineers and technicians 

from the NACA's Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory came to Muroc Army 

Air Base (now Edwards Air Force Base) in 

Southern California's high desert to prepare 

for the first supersonic research flights by the 

X-1 rocket plane.

NASA's all-electric X-57 Maxwell, in its Mod II configuration, arrives at NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. The X-plane was delivered by prime contractor Empirical Systems 

Aerospace of San Luis Obispo, California, in two parts, with the wing separated from the fuselage, to 

aid in a more timely delivery. X-57 is NASA's first crewed X-plane in two decades, and seeks to further 

advance the design and airworthiness process for distributed electric propulsion technology for general 

aviation aircraft. (NASA)
FS-2021-08-001 AFRC

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Armstrong Flight Research Center

P.O. Box 273

Edwards, California 93523

NASA Facts

Since then, the center has been associated with many 

important technological milestones in aviation and space 

access – supersonic and hypersonic flight, digital fly-bywire control systems, supercritical and forward-swept 

wings, and the space shuttles. The center was also where 

the Apollo program’s Lunar Landing Research Vehicle, 

the famed X-15 rocket plane, and the wingless lifting 

bodies were tested during the 1960s and ‘70s. 

In addition to the main campus at Edwards, NASA 

Armstrong bases several Earth science aircraft and the 

Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) at our satellite facility, Building 703 in Palmdale, 

California.

Along with research and support aircraft, Armstrong's 

capabilities include flight simulation, ability to validate 

high temperature and flight loads, flight test instrumentation, processing flight research data, and expertise in 

remotely operated aircraft flight research. Armstrong’s 

system of facilities consists of the Consolidated Information Technology Center, Experimental Fabrication and 

Repair, the Flight Loads Laboratory, and the Research 

Aircraft Integration Facility. In addition, the Dryden 

Aeronautical Test Range has for decades provided 

backup communications for the International Space Station and the Russian Soyuz spacecraft that brings U.S. 

astronauts to and takes them from the space station.

The Research Aircraft Integration Facility can simultaneously check aircraft flight controls, avionics, electronics, 

and other systems. The only one of its type in NASA, the 

facility speeds up and enhances systems integration and 

preflight checks on research aircraft.

NASA Armstrong employs more than 1,000 government 

and contractor personnel at its two campuses at Edwards 

and Palmdale, California.

Media observe as ground crews tow NASA’s DC-8 airborne laboratory into its Palmdale, California hangar. (NASA)