Posted: Wed, May 9, 2001, 3:58 PM ET (1958 GMT)
The X-40A experimental vehicle completed its fifth NASA test flight on Tuesday. The vehicle was released from a helicopter at an altitude of 4,580 meters above Edwards Air Force Base, California at 9:51 am EDT (1351 GMT) Tuesday and landed on the runway below two minutes later. This flight, the fifth in a series conducted by NASA, tested the vehicle's ability to maneuver into a straight landing approach even when released off the centerline, as well as make a series of pitch adjustments during flight. One or two more drop test flights of the X-40A, built by Boeing and on loan from the Air Force, are planned. The X-40A, originally built as a prototype of a proposed military Space Maneuver Vehicle, is an 85-percent scale model of NASA's X-37, a prototype of a space station crew return vehicle.
