Status of the variable diameter centerbody inlet program

Abstract

The Variable Diameter Centerbody (VDC) inlet is an ongoing research program at LeRC. The VDC inlet is a mixed compression, axisymmetric inlet that has potential application on the next generation supersonic transport. This inlet was identified as one of the most promising axisymmetric concepts for supersonic cruise aircraft during the SCAR program in the late 1970's. Some of its features include high recovery, low bleed, good angle-of-attack tolerance, and excellent engine airflow matching. These features were demonstrated at LeRC in the past by the design and testing of fixed hardware models. A current test program in the LeRC 10' x 10' Supersonic Wind Tunnel (SWT) will attempt to duplicate these features on model hardware that actually incorporates a flight-like variable diameter centerbody mechanism.