Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (Ohio) Search this
Extent:
733.77 Cubic feet (1508 document boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Correspondence
Publications
Reports
Photographs
Date:
1915-1955
Summary:
Throughout its history the Engineering Division/Materiel Division at Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio, maintained a catalogued library of technical documents, which was turned over to the Air Force Museum and later donated to the National Air and Space Museum. The collection consists of reports and other documents on a variety of aviation-related topics, including general science (aeronautics, physics, chemistry, etc); military air service personnel, organization, and equipment for both US and foreign air forces; as well as operations, and so on. Currently, the finding aid only covers documents from the D52.1 subject code (Airplanes, arranged alphabetically) and only those that are physically located in the Wright Field Technical Documents Library.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of reports and other documents on a variety of aviation-related topics, including general science (aeronautics, physics, chemistry, etc); military air service personnel, organization, and equipment for both US and foreign air forces; as well as operations, and so on. Information on foreign services and equipment is usually from military intelligence reports, although some foreign documents or translations are included. The material also includes a large section of test reports from the Material Division itself.
Arrangement:
Every document in the collection has been assigned a multi-part Wright Field Number. This number is adapted from the Air Force central decimal correspondence filing system. Wright Field Numbers are written in the format:
• Subject Code: This number begins with an alpha-numeric subject code. For example, D52.1 (Airplanes, arranged alphabetically).
• Category Suffix: A more specific textual subject reference. For example, in the D52.1 subjects, the suffix is usually a manufacturer name, aircraft name, or a general type of aircraft. (Original Wright Field cataloguers could be inconsistent in how they classified an airplane. For example, a document on a Japanese Mitsubishi A6M could be filed alphabetically under A6M, Mitsubishi, Zeke, Zero, or Misc. Japanese.) It is possible to not have a category suffix.
• Sequence Number: The individual number assigned to the document within its subject code and category. If a document was formerly classified as "Security Information," the sequence number starts with "S," for example "S-1." These are usually filed at the beginning of a range of documents. Sometimes technical manuals are filed using the technical order (TO) number. For example, 01-20EE-3 is the sequence number used for a Boeing B-17 Handbook of Overhaul Instructions, TO-01-20EE-3.
• Sequence Modifier: If there is a revision or multiple parts of a document, this is reflected in a sequence modifier. Ex. Dates, revision numbers, etc.
The documents are arranged alpha-numerically by Wright Field Number in the order of:
Each record contains the title and source from the index cards. Information from the subject field on the cards appears as a scope and content note.
Currently, the finding aid only covers documents from the D52.1 subject code and only those that are physically located in the Wright Field Technical Documents Library. Please contact the NASM Archives regarding additional documents. Some may be located in the Technical Reference Files, cataloguing information may be only on the index cards, or the document has been catalogued as missing from the collection.
Biographical / Historical:
In 1917, the United States Army Air Service established an aviation engineering section at McCook Field in Dayton, Ohio. In 1927, the Engineering Division, as it was then known, moved to nearby Wilbur Wright Field and remained there as the Air Force Materiel Division (AFMD) and Air Materiel Command (AMC) until Wright Field combined with Patterson Field to become Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in 1948. The Engineering Division was responsible for Army Air Services research and development and served as a clearinghouse for information on aviation development worldwide. Throughout its history the Engineering Division/Materiel Division maintained a catalogued library of documents, which was turned over to the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson and was later donated to the National Air and Space Museum.
Provenance:
United States Air Force Museum, Transfer, 1962, NASM.XXXX.0428.
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
"General rules of Italian aircraft flight testing and acceptance." Source: MID 2086-396/5. Italy L.9205
Collection Creator:
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (Ohio) Search this
Container:
Box D692, Folder D52.151 / 3
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
29 Dec 1925
Scope and Contents:
Performance - Airplane; Military intelligence Division - Italy L.9205
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access
Collection Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (Ohio) Search this
Extent:
5.45 Cubic feet ((5 records center boxes))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Project files
Negatives
Reports
Date:
1917-1926
bulk 1920-1925
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of the project books for aircraft tested by the Experimental Division in the early 1920s. Most project books contain photstats of the specifications and contracts for these aircraft as well as Air Service inspection and test reports. The collection also includes an extensive negative collection documenting the project book aircraft.
Biographical / Historical:
In 1917 the United States Army Air Service established an aviation engineering section at McCook Field in Dayton, OH. In 1927 the Engineering Division, as it was then known, moved to nearby Wilbur Wright Field and there remained as the Air Force Material Division (AFMD) and Air Material Command (AMC) until Wright Field combined with Patterson Field to become Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in 1948. The Engineering Division was in charge of research and development for the Army Air Services and was a clearinghouse for the Army Air Services on aviation development worldwide.
General:
NASMrev
Provenance:
No donor information, Gift, unknown, XXXX-0058, unknown
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (Ohio) Search this
Extent:
899.25 Cubic feet ((825 records center boxes))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Date:
1918-1971
Scope and Contents:
This collection contains the file of still photographs taken by the Air Force Material Division at McCook Field, Wright Field, and Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The material consists of over 340,000 black and white and color photographs illustrating the design, development and testing of military aircraft; structural components; and personal, emergency, and survival equipment. The collection also contains documentation of unsatisfactory materials and components, aircraft accident investigations, publicity, and development of McCook Field facilities to the present day Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The majority of the photos were taken as integral parts of the testing or investigation procedure for inclusion in resulting reports.
Biographical / Historical:
In 1917 the United States Army Air Service established an aviation engineering section at McCook Field in Dayton, OH. In 1927 the Engineering Division, as it was then known, moved to nearby Wilbur Wright Field and there remained as the Air Force Material Division (AFMD) and Air Material Command (AMC) until Wright Field combined with Patterson Field to become Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in 1948. The Engineering Division was in charge of research and development for the Army Air Services and was a clearinghouse for the Army Air Services on aviation development worldwide.
General:
NASMrev
Provenance:
University of Wisconsin, Transfer, 1981, XXXX-0172, Public Domain
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
This collection consists of the Air Force master microfilm of captured German and Japanese documents pertaining to aviation. The documents cover a wide variety of subjects, including aircraft and engines, flight test reports, proposals, and engineering studies. English translation is provided for some documents.
Biographical / Historical:
In the final days of World War II, the advancing Allied armies captured a large number of documents from the German and Japanese governments. These documents were taken to various sites in Europe and the United States for evaluation and appraisal. Those documents considered valuable were microfilmed for preservation. Aviation-related documents were turned over to the United States Army Air Force and microfilmed by the Air Documents Division, Technical Information Section (T-2), Air Material Command at Wright Field, OH [now Wright-Patterson AFB].
General:
All documents in this collection are unclassified.
NASMrev
Provenance:
Defense Documentation Center, Transfer, 1966, XXXX-0431, Public Domain
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
This collection is a product of the material gathered for the Flight Testing Exhibit. It includes the following material: technical reports; copy negatives with corresponding photocopies of images used in the exhibit; unidentified miscellaneous negatives which were probably gathered for research but not used in the exhibit; and a script, with negatives and prints, for the Cruise Missile section of the exhibit.
Biographical / Historical:
The Gallery of Flight Testing, which opened in 1976, was designed to exhibit aircraft design concepts and their significance in the story of flight. The exhibit illustrated problems of flight and how many of those problems have been solved.
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
Flight research at Ames : fifty-seven years of development and validation of aeronautical technology, 1940-1997 / Paul F. Borchers, James A. Franklin, and Jay W. Fletcher
Title:
Fifty-seven years of development and validation of aeronautical technology, 1940-1997
This collection consists of material collected by Walter J. Boyne in preparation for the writing of a series of articles about McCook Field. The collection consists of the following: numerous photographs, a small number of negatives, some technical notes and reports, correspondence, magazine clippings, a decal, publications, and several questionnaires. The photographic component consists of images of aircraft, both on the ground and airborne, as well as photos of parts of aircraft. In addition, there are photos of workers in the process of constructing airplanes and of crash tests and their results. A few personal photographs of members of the air crew can also be found within the collection. The questionnaires in the collection were created by Boyne and were sent in 1977 to various individuals who were connected with McCook Field in various capacities.
Biographical / Historical:
McCook Field, established in Dayton, Ohio in 1917, was the first military aviation facility developed for research and experimentation in the United States. The testing of airplanes, including new experimental models, continued until 1927 when the facility was closed. Operations were subsequently moved to nearby Wright Field, which later evolved into the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in 1948.
General:
NASMrev
Provenance:
Walter J. Boyne, gift, unknown, XXXX-0569, unknown
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
Notes on methods and calculations for static tests and full flight performance tests for new military airplanes / U. S. Bureau of Aircraft Production, Airplane Engineering Division, Experimental Engineering, McCook Field, Dayton, Ohio
Author:
United States Bureau of Aircraft Production Airplane Engineering Division, Experimental Engineering, McCook Field, Dayton, Ohio Search this
