Title: Tu-144LL Flying Laboratory
Designer: Unknown
Year it was designed: circa 1996
Explanation or story behind the patch: The Tu-144LL Supersonic Flying Laboratory was flown to obtain experimental flight test data for the National High Speed Research Program. The modified supersonic transport was flown in Russia by U.S. and Russian crew members. The U.S. pilots included C. Gordon Fullerton and Rob Rivers. A total of 27 research flights were flown from November 1996 and April 1999 to collect data on surface/structure equilibrium temperature verification, slender-wing ground effects, handling qualities assessment, structure/cabin noise evaluation, pressure coefficient, coefficient of friction, and boundary layer measurements. The project patch features the Tu-144LL with the U.S. and Russian flags. All text is presented in both English and Cyrillic characters. Two variants of this patch were produced. This is the Russian version.
For more information on the Tu-144 Flying Laboratory, click https://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/news/FactSheets/FS-062-DFRC.html