Bell X-14
| X-14 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Bell Type 68 VTOL | |
| Role | Experimental VTOL |
| Manufacturer | Bell Aircraft |
| First flight | 19 February 1957 |
| Retired | 29 May 1981 |
| Status | Museum Display |
| Primary users |
NASA United States Air Force |
| Number built | 1 |
| Bell X-14 thrust vectoring vanes | |
 View of the X-14's thrust vectoring vanes used to transition from vertical to horizontal flight from the Ropkey Armor Museum. |
The Bell X-14 (Bell Type 68) was an experimental VTOL aircraft flown in the United States in the 1950s. The main objective of the project was to demonstrate vectored thrust horizontal and vertical takeoff, hover, transition to forward flight, and vertical landing.
Bell constructed the X-14 as an open-cockpit, all-metal (duralumin) monoplane for the USAF. It was powered by two Armstrong Siddeley Viper turbojet engines equipped with thrust deflectors sited at the aircraft's centre of gravity. The engines are fixed in position; transition from vertical to horizontal flight is achieved with a system of movable vanes that control the direction of engine thrust. Top speed was 180 miles per hour with a service ceiling of 20,000 feet. The X-14 was designed using existing parts from two Beechcraft aircraft: wings, ailerons, and landing gear of a Beech Bonanza and the tailcone and empennage of a Beech T-34 Mentor.
The X-14 first flew on 19 February 1957 as a vertical takeoff, hover, then vertical landing. The first transition from hover to horizontal flight occurred on 24 May 1958. In 1959, its Viper engines were replaced with General Electric J85 engines. That year the aircraft was also delivered to the NASA Ames Research Center as the X-14A. During the development of the P.1127, Hawker test pilots Bill Bedford and Hugh Merewether visited NASA Ames to fly the X-14 and acquaint themselves with jet V/STOL aircraft handling prior to the first flights of the prototype P.1127. It served as a test aircraft with NASA until 1981.
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