NACA was established on March 13, 1915, by the federal government through enabling legislation as an emergency measure during World War I to promote industry, academic, … See more

In the years immediately preceding World War II, NACA was involved in the development of several designs that served key roles in … See more

Special Committee on Space Technology
On November 21, 1957, Hugh Dryden, NACA's director, established the Special Committee on Space … See more

• U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission: The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA)
• The NASA Technical Reports Server provides access to a collection of 14,469 NACA documents dating from 1917. See more

On January 29, 1920, President Wilson appointed pioneering flier and aviation engineer Orville Wright to NACA's board. By the early 1920s, it had adopted a new and more ambitious mission: to promote military and civilian aviation through applied research … See more

After early experiments by Opel RAK with rocket propulsion leading to the first public flight of a rocket plane, the Opel RAK.1, in 1929 and eventual military programs at Heinkel and … See more

• Michael H. Gorn, Expanding the Envelope: Flight Research at NACA and NASA.
• James … See more