Experimental aircraft

A LTV XC-142 experimental V/STOL aircraft.

An experimental aircraft is an aircraft that has not yet been fully proven in flight. Often, this implies that new aerospace technologies are being tested on the aircraft, though the label is more broad.

The term "experimental aircraft" is usually used to refer to aircraft flown with an experimental certificate.[1] In the United States, this includes most homebuilt aircraft; many of which are based on conventional designs and hence are experimental only in name.[2] The term "research aircraft", by contrast, generally denotes aircraft modified to perform scientific studies, such as weather research or geophysical surveying, similar to a research vessel.

See also

Notes

  1. 14CFR 21.175, US Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved 2018-01-12
  2. 14CFR 21.191, US Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved 2018-01-12


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.