<p>Convair CV 990 NASA 710 (N710NA), a Convair 990 transport aircraft formerly used for medium altitude atmospheric research, cruises over the Mojave Desert near NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California. The flight was a final speed calibration run prior to the start of extensive modifications that turned the aircraft into a landing systems research aircraft to test and evaluate brakes and landing gear systems on space shuttles and also conventional aircraft.
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Research flights with the aircraft began in April of 1993. Testing of shuttle components lasted into fiscal year 1995.
NASA
1989-03-06
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