National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics

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NACA official seal

The NACA (National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics) was a U.S. federal agency founded on March 3, 1915 to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958 the agency was dissolved, and its assets and personnel formed the core of the newly created NASA. NACA was pronounced 'En Ay Cee Ay' rather than 'Nakka'.

The name remains familiar in the automotive world for the NACA duct, a form of air intake, or to those in the aircraft industry, as several series of NACA airfoils are still being used in new design.

NACA began as an emergency measure during World War I to promote industry/academic/government coordination on war-related projects. By the early 1920s, it had adopted a new and more ambitious mission: to promote military and civilian aviation through applied research that looked beyond current needs. NACA's researchers pursued this mission through the agency's impressive collection of in-house wind tunnels, engine test stands, and flight test facilities. Commercial and military clients were also permitted to use NACA's facilities on a contract basis.

In 1922, NACA had 100 employees. By 1938, it had 426. In addition to formal assignments, staff were encouraged to pursue unauthorized "bootleg" research, provided that is was not too exotic. The result was a long string of fundamental breakthroughs, including "NACA engine cowl" (1930s), the "NACA wing" (1940s), and the "area rule" for supersonic aircraft (1950s). NACA claims credit for having the 1st aircraft to break the sound barrier. They also claim credit for the 1st aircraft that eventually flew to the "edge of space".

Sept. 30, 1946 - Five NACA engineers, headed by Walter C. Williams, arrived at Muroc Army Airfield (now Edwards AFB) from Langley Aeronautical Laboratory, VA, to prepare for X-1 supersonic research flights in joint NACA-Army Air Forces program. ^[1]

The NACA experience provided a powerful model for World War II research, the postwar government laboratories, and NACA's successor: the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).