NASA Planes

Kinja'd!!! "sliding-sideways" (sliding-sideways)
03/24/2014 at 19:27 • Filed to: NASA

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I never knew the Global Hawk's wingspan was that large.


DISCUSSION (21)


Kinja'd!!! Chuck 2(O=[][]=O)2 > sliding-sideways
03/24/2014 at 19:35

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Saw one at the Wright Patterson AF Museum, the best plane museum in the world (honestly). The thing was hanging from the ceiling in one of the massive hangers. There was a B52, but I just kept staring at the drone. It is amazing and fucking huge.

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Kinja'd!!! PatBateman > sliding-sideways
03/24/2014 at 19:36

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That was my first thought too.


Kinja'd!!! f86sabre > sliding-sideways
03/24/2014 at 19:37

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The Hawk ' s wing span is about the same as a 757.

How old is the shot? Are they still flying the F-16XL?


Kinja'd!!! Spaceball-Two > sliding-sideways
03/24/2014 at 19:39

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Don't they also have two highly modified B-58's?


Kinja'd!!! sliding-sideways > f86sabre
03/24/2014 at 19:42

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The picture is from November, 2008 but this page says the F-16XL hasn't flown since 1996.


Kinja'd!!! sliding-sideways > Chuck 2(O=[][]=O)2
03/24/2014 at 19:43

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That picture makes the drone look huge.


Kinja'd!!! Chuck 2(O=[][]=O)2 > sliding-sideways
03/24/2014 at 19:50

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It truly is 130ft wingspan


Kinja'd!!! pdthedeuce > sliding-sideways
03/24/2014 at 20:10

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I regularly see NASA T-38s from Ellington Field in Houston fly over my house (approx. 100 miles from Ellington) .


Kinja'd!!! Gizmo - The Only Good Gremlin, but don't feed me after Midnight > sliding-sideways
03/24/2014 at 20:31

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Didn't they also have 2 SR-71. I vaguely remember a USAF budget that included two (giving Lockheed a total of 4 to maintain) so the cost of NASA's jets would be cut by 30%. Oops, that was dated 1992-99.


Kinja'd!!! UserNotFound > sliding-sideways
03/24/2014 at 20:39

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No WB-57?

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Kinja'd!!! sliding-sideways > pdthedeuce
03/24/2014 at 20:54

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Back when I lived in Houston (I could see Johnson Space Center from my house), T-38s were a fairly common sight, though that was when the Shuttle program was still operational.


Kinja'd!!! sliding-sideways > Spaceball-Two
03/24/2014 at 20:57

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I only know of one B-58 that NASA used, and according to this page , it is on display in Indiana.


Kinja'd!!! pdthedeuce > sliding-sideways
03/24/2014 at 20:58

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bout a million years ago , I live in La Porte and had Robert Crippen for a neighbor .


Kinja'd!!! sliding-sideways > pdthedeuce
03/24/2014 at 21:05

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I met a lot of aerospace engineers but never an astronaut. The closest I got to meeting an astronaut was when I had a class with one of Lisa Nowak's kids.


Kinja'd!!! Krieger (@FSKrieger22) > Gizmo - The Only Good Gremlin, but don't feed me after Midnight
03/25/2014 at 08:54

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They're in museums like the rest of the SR-71s and A-12s now.


Kinja'd!!! Matt Urban > pdthedeuce
03/25/2014 at 20:39

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I see the ER-2 flying over my house all the time. IT is very distinct.


Kinja'd!!! pdthedeuce > Matt Urban
03/25/2014 at 20:43

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I'm sure it is !


Kinja'd!!! Diesel > Spaceball-Two
04/16/2014 at 16:36

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Are you thinking of the WB-57s? There are three of them now. And those are also massive.


Kinja'd!!! Diesel > UserNotFound
04/16/2014 at 16:37

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I see a U2. The WB-57 are based out of Ellington, this is not there.


Kinja'd!!! Spaceball-Two > Diesel
04/16/2014 at 17:12

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Yes. Last I read they had in or around Afghanistan tracking communications and being basically a flying relay tower. Big white one with extended wings and nose cone.


Kinja'd!!! Diesel > Spaceball-Two
04/16/2014 at 17:16

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Yeah, those are based out of Ellington(Houston Airfield, close to JSC). Here's a photo.

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Here's an article about them. You pretty much nailed their use though. Fun fact, they can take off at idle due to the massive amount of lift their wings have.

http://www.wired.com/2012/09/air-fo…