First Flight: December 14, 1984
Mission: Testbed to determine effectiveness of forward swept wings, as well as
advanced avionics and structural composites.
Major Accomplishments: First serious attempt at forward swept wing for supersonic
aircraft.
Power Source: 1 General Electric F404-GE400 turbofan (16,000 lb thrust)
Wing Span: 27.2'
Length: 48.1'
Maximum Achieved Speed: Mach 1.6
Maximum Achieved Altitude:50,000 ft
Additional Information: Two X-29's were built and flown. Each served as testbed for multiple missions including aerodynamics, composite building techniques and advanced avionics. The concept of the forward swept wing was tested as early as WWII, but it was soon found that this type of wing must be thin to be maneuverable. When these early tests were conducted, light yet rigid materials were not readily available. It was not until the late 1970's and 1980's that this materials were available and could be incorporated into high speed aircraft.
Though most of the X-29's flights were conducted from Edwards AFB, one X-29 was flown to the Dayton (Ohio) International Air Show and to the Experimental Aircraft Association's (EAA) International Convention and Sport Aviation Exhibition at Oshkosh, Wisc.
The X-29 test program was concluded in 1992. The two X-29's were flown for a total of 374 flights.
X-29 as displayed at the USAF museum
