X-31 Enhanced Fighter Maneuverability Demonstrator Research Aircraft Family
The X-31 Enhanced Fighter Maneuverability demonstrator family comprised two international research aircraft flown by NASA, the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Air Force, Rockwell Aerospace, and German partners to test thrust-vectoring and advanced digital flight controls in the post-stall regime. The first aircraft flew in 1993 and was lost in 1995; the program logged 580 research and demonstration flights before concluding in June 1995, with the surviving aircraft continuing follow-on research and later entering a German museum collection.
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Identity
- Aliases
- X-31Enhanced Fighter Maneuverability (EFM) DemonstratorX-31 Enhanced Fighter Maneuverability
- Family Name
- X-31 Enhanced Fighter Maneuverability Demonstrator
- Full Name
- X-31 Enhanced Fighter Maneuverability Demonstrator Research Aircraft Family
- Roles
- militaryresearchexperimentaltechnology_demonstrator
- Status
- retired
- Type
- aircraft
Details
- Aircraft Specs
- Configuration
- fixed_wing
- Operating Modes
- land
- Takeoff Landing Capabilities
- conventional
- Description
- The X-31 Enhanced Fighter Maneuverability demonstrator family comprised two international research aircraft flown by NASA, the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Air Force, Rockwell Aerospace, and German partners to test thrust-vectoring and advanced digital flight controls in the post-stall regime. The first aircraft flew in 1993 and was lost in 1995; the program logged 580 research and demonstration flights before concluding in June 1995, with the surviving aircraft continuing follow-on research and later entering a German museum collection.
- First Flight Year
- 1,993
- Last Flight Year
- 1,995
- Propulsion Configurations
- Entries
- Count
- 1
- Placement
- fuselage
- Propulsion System
- Role
- main
- Stage
- airframe
- Variant Notes
- Single F404-GE-400 installation; NASA reports 16,000 lbf / approximately 71.17 kN afterburning thrust. Exact thrust-vectoring paddles are installation hardware, not separate propulsion identities.
- Name
- X-31 single-engine F404-GE-400 thrust-vectoring installation
- Notes
- The X-31 demonstrators used one General Electric F404-GE-400 turbofan. Three carbon-carbon thrust-vectoring paddles adjacent to the engine nozzle redirected exhaust in pitch and yaw, coupled with digital flight controls for high-angle-of-attack and post-stall maneuvering.
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Assets & Meta
- Creation Time
- August 13, 2026 at 21:22:38 UTC
- Updated Time
- September 8, 2026 at 10:06:04 UTC
- Image
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