One of the most unusual-looking aircraft ever to fly, the X-29 was built primarily to explore the forward swept wing (FSW) concept, which gives an aircraft unprecedented agility. The X-29 also pioneered the use of advanced composite materials, movable close- coupled canards, and advanced flight controls. The FSW concept had first been explored by the Germans in World War II (and by the Army Air Forces with the XFG-1 fuel transport glider) but was not practical with conventional metal construction, as the wings could not be made rigid enough to keep them from bending. Funded by the Air Force, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, and NASA, the X-29 was the first new pure research aircraft in more than a decade. In an effort to reduce costs, the two airplanes built were assembled by taking the forward fuselages from two F-5As and such off-the- shelf components as F-16 landing gear and flight-control actuators. Development of the triple redundant, fly-by-wire flight-control system and its software slowed the program. Also, as the program was a fairly low priority, the first X-29 was shipped from New York to California by military bulk freighter via the Panama Canal. Basic parameters, such as stability, loads, and flutter were examined in the first phase of flight test, which ran through 1986. The second phase of flight test concentrated on engine performance and air data collection. On June 8, 1988, the X-29 broke the record for most flights made by an X-series aircraft, when NASA pilot Rogers Smith flew the number one aircraft for the 200th time, breaking the X-15's record of 199. The first X-29 was flown 242 times before it was retired in 1988 and is now in the US Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. During testing, the X-29 picked up the unofficial nickname of "Polecat." The second X-29, identical to the first except for the addition of a spin test parachute and different instrumentation, was flown for the first time on May 23, 1989. The second aircraft was used to explore controlled flight at high angles of attack, including beyond 65°. It was retired in 1991.

Contractors:	Grumman Aerospace
Locations Built:	Bethpage, N. Y.
Number Built: (USAF)	Two (two)
First Flight:	December 14, 1984
First Flight Model:	X-29A
First Flight Location:	Edwards AFB, Calif.
First Flight Pilot:	Chuck Sewell
Models/Variants:	X-29A
Powerplant:	One General Electric F404-GE-400 turbofan of 16,000 lb thrust
Wingspan:	27 ft 2 in.
Length:	48 ft 1 in.
Height:	14 ft 3 in.
Weight:	17,303 lb gross
Armament:	None
Accommodation:	Pilot only
Cost:	Approx $260 million (total program, incl two aircraft and flight test)
Max. Speed:	1,200 mph
Range:	Endurance of slightly more than one hr.
Ceiling:	55,000 ft.