Have you ever noticed a funny-looking aircraft and wondered what its purpose was? Most people’s first thoughts are something like “government” or “military,” but there are countless fascinating nuances that go into the creation and use of special mission aircraft. They might be packed with sensors and pods, or they might not even fly the same way a normal business jet flies. No matter what they do, these aircraft help aviation and science make progress. So it’s no wonder an environmental research aircraft recently caught pilot Ron Rapp’s eye.
NOAA Gulfstream V
Rapp writes on his blog that he saw a colorful NOAA Gulfstream V while on an assignment in Hawaii and found out that it was a “High-performance Instrumented Airborne Platform for Environmental Research,” known more simply as HIAPER. Because it was supported by the National Center for Atmospheric Research and because it was a Gulfstream aircraft, Rapp concluded that HIAPER was supposed to gather data on storm systems brewing in the area at the time.
The Gulfstream has high altitude capability and is able to drop tools that measure factors like temperature, pressure, humidity and wind as they fall into storms in oceanic areas. This is integral to predicting landfall accuracy.
I see Rapp’s post on special mission aircraft as covering two main categories (besides transporting people and supplies, of course): nature and space. From tracking the weather to eradicating harmful fruit flies from the environment (the latter of which Rapp did by dropping sterile files onto land while hand-flying modified U-21As at low altitudes), special mission aircraft help us modify our natural environment for the better.
And as for space? Special mission aircraft are the best thing we’ve got for simulating spacecraft. Heavily modified Gulfstream II jets (pictured below) were actually used by NASA in Space Shuttle simulations for decades. Now this is what I meant when I said some aircraft even fly differently: both Spey engines on the jets ran in reverse at 92% N2 to match the steepness of the shuttle’s descent!
NASA – Gulfstream II
Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA)
Beyond simulation, Rapp notes his recent experience with the pilot of a Boeing 747 (NASA – SOFIA) (pictured above) that contained a huge space telescope in its tail– no small feat considering the telescope had to be exposed to open air while the cabin remained pressurized. And yet it worked, showing how vital special mission aircraft are for accessing not just spots here on Earth, but up and beyond.