For release: March 14, 1997
Keith Henry
(757) 864-6120
RELEASE NO. 97-017
News representatives -- and their cameras -- are invited to experience NASA’s vision of lightplane cockpit technology of the future Monday, March 17, from 1 to 3 p.m., in the NASA Langley Hangar, Bldg. 1244.
Reporters may “fly” NASA Langley’s General Aviation Concept Demonstration facility and experience first-hand the efficient and safe pilot-friendly systems being developed jointly by NASA, the Federal Aviation Administration and U.S. industry. The newly upgraded facility, a cockpit mockup with interactive controls and displays, is a research tool to develop and evaluate new concepts.
After a few minutes of pre-flight briefing, even a first-time pilot can try his or her hand at guiding a single-engine aircraft of tomorrow on a computer-generated “highway-in-the-sky.”
The entire experience can be as short as 20-30 minutes. Reporters may arrive at any time between 1 and 2 p.m. Monday for their own flight demonstration.
Please call Keith Henry at mobile 715-0148 or 864-6120 for more information or to indicate your interest in attending.
NASA Langley leads the 70-some member consortium called AGATE , short for Advanced General Aviation (Personal) Transport Experiment. AGATE’s goal is to provide leadership for the revitalization of the ailing U.S. lightplane industry. Part of that effort includes increasing the number of private pilots by increasing the ease and attractiveness of being a pilot and by promoting the single-engine aircraft as a practical alternative to the automobile for personal travel on round trips from 150 to 700 miles.
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