National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics Research Authorization Collection 1918-1951 Preliminary Inventory May2015 This collection of approximately 220 cubic feet of aeronautics material was transferred from NASA Langley Research Center to NASA Headquarters in 2015. It includes material on aeronautics research and development for several critical decades in our nation's history. There are R&D proposals, correspondence and memoranda detailing project consideration at the NACA subcommittee and executive committee levels, correspondence on budgetary issues, project approval letters, and blueprints. A few published Research Memoranda, the final report for each research project, are included in the files; however, the series resides electronically in the NASA Technical Reports Server at http:(/www.sti.nasa.gov/. The files also include correspondence between NACA Headquarters and Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory, the Navy Department, the War Department, the Department of Commerce, commercial aircraft companies, and university officials. This preliminary inventory should be used in conjunction with the description of the RA Collection located on page 572 of Engineer in Charge: A History of the Langley Aeronautical Laboratorv.1917-1958 by historian James R. Hansen. It may be found at http://history.nasa.gov/SP-4305/sp4305.htm. The RA Collection has been minimally processed; therefore, some material is slightly out of order. This PDF inventory has a box and folder list which combine a spreadsheet and a Word document. The archival staff can assist you by searching both the spreadsheet and the Word document if you are looking for something specific. Also, material should be handled carefully due to its fragile nature. Although the RA Collection was declassified in 2005, it may still contain a few foreign classified documents and some other sensitive items. Please bring these to the attention of the archival staff when you encounter them. The folders are labeled with the name of the research project and the authorization number. Since the RAs are in order sequentially, they generally run chronologically by date. However, it appears that the files in the first 4 boxes have gotten out of order, as have the folders beginning in box 555 that contain RAs numbered in the 1300s and the 1400s. The latter probably occurred during packing and transfer from LaRC to HQ. This collection documents wind tunnel testing using a variety of different wind tunnels to test many different aircraft including seaplanes, helicopters, and military aircraft. Some of the aeronautics projects under investigation and study in these 200 boxes include: Resistance Hydrodynamic characteristics Take-off and landing tests Stability and control Airplane behavior Water landing characteristics of land-type Standardization of wind tunnels airplanes Scale effect on airfoils High-speed wing designs Airfoil sections for helicopter rotor blades Spinning characteristics Aerodynamics and structural design critical Drag and compressibility effects for helicopters Aero characteristics Engine operation Wing-flap arrangement Propeller characteristics in high speed flight Aero characteristics of thin wings high Condensation trails at high altitudes speed bomber Wing loading and wing aspect ratio Maximum lift stalling and stability Seaplane tank investigation Performance characteristics High speed wind tunnel investigation of Flying qualities of the Japanese Mitsubishi Navy Special Missile "Lark" Zero Investigation of bodies suitable for Low-drag wing sections for Boeing long­ supersonic flight range bomber study Flight and wind tunnel investigation of aero Ailerons for high performance military characteristics of transonic airplanes planes Flying qualities of the B-29 airplane Pressure distribution on gun turrets for Guest structure and circulation pattern Northrop XB-35 airplanes within a thunderstorm Problem of engine cooling at high altitudes High Reynolds Number and Low Mach Pressure distribution Number of transonic and supersonic wings Structural elements Flying qualities Study to reduce noise emanations from Anti-spin parachutes airplanes Ditching characteristics Pilot escape methods for high speed aircraft The inventory pages for Boxes 26 - 252 have redactions of 1) old shelf numbers that corresponded to LaRC Archive room locations and 2) old page numbers and information on compilers of the list. This broader NACA Research Authorizations Preliminary Inventory is a joint effort of many people at LaRC -Public Affairs Officer Gail Langevin; Historic Preservation Officer Mary Gainer Hurst; Environmental Scientist Caroline Diehl; contractor Mark Chambers; and interns Tory Boykin and Lynne Fors; and at NASA HQ - Chief Archivist Jane H. Odom. Additional Research Authorization Collections may be found at NARA-:College Park and NARA-Philadelphia. In Appendix A on p. 137 of this inventory, is a detailed description of some of the early RAs. This description was located in the Milton Ames Collection at LaRC. Although the box numbers no longer match with the current filing scheme, there should still be valuable information for researchers who are studying specific early RAs. Jane H. Odom NASA Chief Archivist Washington, DC May 2016 Box RA# Description Date 1 70 Airfoil and wing tests 1943 71 Biplane I triplane tests 1921-25, 27, 31 73 Tests of FB-5 airplane 1922, 1926-27 74 VE-7 airplane loan for testing 1922-23 75 Airplane radiator research 1920,22,24 543-1- 543-31 RAs- National Bureau of Standards 1942 70-493 RA s 1922-1935 1950, 1922-35 510-742 RAs 1936-1940 1936-40 745-899 RAs 1940-41 1940-41 900-999 RAs 1941-1942 1941-1942 1001-1050 RAs 1942 1942 1051-1116 RAs 1942-43 1942-43 121.33 Closed RAs 1939-40, 44-47, 51 121.33 Closed RAs 1938-50 148-22-5 Airplane fittings, tests, photos 1919-20 2 54-6 (42) fuel injection engine developments 1920-21 54-6(46) free flight, helicopter tests 1920-23 54-6(42) engine fuel injector tests 1921-22 54-6(42) engine fuel injector tests 1922-24 54-6(53) letters - lift distribution on wings 1922-23, 1926 54-6 (33, 23/21, 16) airplane instrument, velocity 1920-23 148-22 RAs A-J, 99A-2/21 1919-29, 1932 1-392 RAs 1-392 1918-32 3 404-599 RAs 404-599 1938-401 600-799 RAs 600-799 1940-19411 800-899 RAs 800-899 1940-19411 900-999 RAs 900-999 1941-421 1000-1099 RAs 1000-1099 1942-19431 1100-1198 RAs 1100-1198 1943 4 1200-1299 RAs 1200-1299 1944 1300-1399 RAs 1300-1399 1944-1946 1400-1584 RAs 1400-1584 1924 148-22(A) RA #A, job orders 487~488 ------ -----------1924 148-22(8) RA #B, job orders 484-513 1924 148-22 c RA #C, job orders 492-493 1924 148-22(0) RA #D, job orders 483 1923 148-22 E RA #E, job order 496 1924 148-22(F) RA #F, letters, LMAL pictures 1924 148-22(G) RA #G, job oder 506 1924 148-22(H) RA #H, job order 507 1924 148-22(1) RA #II, job oder 508 1924 148-22(J) RA #J, job order 471, blueprints 1923-24 1 RA #1, letters 1918-1919 2 RA #2/31, letters 1919-1920 3 RA #3/21 1920 5 RA #5, cancellation letter 1918 57 RA #7, 7/21 1919-20 8 RA#8 1919 9 RA#9, 9/21 1919-20 10 RA #10, 10/21 1919-20 11 RA#ll 1920 12 RA #12/21 1920 13 RA #13/21 1920 14 RA #14/21 1920 15 RA#15/21 1920 16 RA #16/21, letters, graphs 1920, 1922-23 148-22(18/21) Letters on RAs 1920 34 RA #34/21 1920 35 Letters on engine tests 1922-24 35 tests on Roots-type supercharger 1920-21, 23-25 35 Roots supercharger, radiator tests 1920-231 35 supercharger and fuel injector tests 1920-26, 6 35 roots supercharer tests 1923-24i 36 A. E. F. supercharger tests 1920-1926 36 A. E. F. supercharger tests 1920-21, 1923 37 RA #37/21 19201 38 RA-·--- #38/21 19201 --- --- -- - ;L 39 RA #39/21 1920 40 RA #40/21 1920 41 RA#41/21 1920 42 RA #42, fuel injection, 1920-26 1920-26 42 fuel injection engine tests 1920-24 7 42 fuel injection engine tests 1919-22 43 Gallaudet Wings 1921 44 wing characteristics 1920-1921 45 longitudinal stability 1920-1921 46 small oscillations in study flight 1921 50 RA#50 1921 51 Pressure distribution over wings 1921-22, 1926 52 RA#52 1921 53 Pressure distribution over wings 1922-25, 1930 54 RA#54 1921 55 RA#55 1921 62 RA#62 1921 63 RA#63 1921 64 helicopter development and tests 1921, 1923-24 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1920-1927 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1926-1932 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1932-35 8 80 standardization of wind tunnels 1936-42 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1943-51 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1933-35,37,39,42 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1922-29, 31-32 9 70 N. P. L. airfoil model tests 1923-24 145-7 test- airship model - Reynolds 1924 70 standardization of wind tunnels 19431 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1947-48 70 aerodynamics and tunnel testing 1949-501 70 aerodynamics tests- letters, report 1950-551 70 requests, comments on research 1949 70 wind tunnel tests 1942-471 3 10 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1943-451 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1944-45. 70 wind tunnel tests 1921, 46-47, 49-50 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1947-48 1 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1946-47j 11 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1949 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1948-49' 70B tunnel tests on spheres 1923, 1925-261 AA248-2 jet propulsion tests 1927, 1931-321 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1948-50 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1949-5ol 12 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1951-55 70 standardization of wind tunnels 1950-51j 70A metal-clad airship 1925 1 71 Biplane I triplane wings 1921-25 72 free air tests of spheres 1921 73 comparative stability of airplanes 1922-23, 26-27 74 effect of dihedral angles 1922