Douglas D-558: D-558-1 Skystreak and D-558-2 Skyrocket

The Douglas D-558 research aircraft were built to investigate flight in the high subsonic and supersonic regimes and to develop means of coping with compressibility and pitch-up. They were well-designed, strong, and efficient aircraft that enabled test pilots to tackle the unknown in comparative safety. Despite delays and cost limitations, they generated information that provided design solutions for a generation of supersonic combat aircraft.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 80 pages
Publication date: 31 October 2019
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

The Douglas D-558 research aircraft, built in two variants, was a collaborative project between the US Navy and NACA to investigate flight in the high subsonic and supersonic regimes and develop means of coping with compressibility and pitch-up, which had caused many accidents to early jets. Wind tunnels could not provide the necessary data, so pilots had to risk their safety in experimental aircraft. The aircraft were well-designed, strong, and efficient, enabling test pilots to tackle the unknown in comparative safety. Despite delays and limited by the cost of air-launched sorties, they went well beyond their original Mach 1 speed objective and continued to generate information that provided design solutions for a whole generation of supersonic combat aircraft. The final stage of the D-558 programme, the USNs 'militarized D-558-3, never happened, but the Navy was able to apply the lessons of the programme to its much more practical combat types such as the F8U Crusader and F3H Demon. Supported by full-colour artwork, including three-view plates of the two D-558 models and a technical view of the D-2 cockpit, this authoritative text offers a comprehensive guide to the record-breaking Navy research craft.

Weight: 274g
Dimension: 246 x 183 x 5 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781472836212