Application of laminar flow control to the High Speed Civil Transport - The NASA Supersonic Laminar Flow Control Program

The NASA Supersonic Laminar Flow Control (SLFC) program encompasses the development of refined CFD methods and boundary layer stability codes for the highly 3D supersonic flow conditions encountered by the F-16XL technology demonstration aircraft and the prospective High Speed Civil Transport (HSCT). While the F-16XL-1 aircraft continues to gather SLFC data, work is under way on the F-16XL-2 aircraft: which will furnish attach-line design criteria, code-calibration data, and an improved understanding of the flowfield over a wing that will add confidence to the design of HSCTs' boundary layer-controlling air-suction panels.