A NASA F-15 aircraft flies above Washington on Saturday, July 4, 2026, as part of a flyover to celebrate America’s 250th birthday. This aircraft is from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, and it joined other NASA aircraft for the flyover.
NASA/Jim Ross
In honor of America’s 250th birthday, two of NASA’s most iconic aircraft got a fresh coat of red, white, and blue paint ahead of a flyover in Washington on July 4, 2026, with other NASA aircraft.
An F-15 and an F/A-18 from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, recently were repainted in patriotic colors as a tribute to the past and a salute to the future.
The red, white, and blue commemorative paint and Freedom 250 logo will remain on these aircraft for at least the next year, so be sure to catch these at local air shows and events.
Follow along on social media and at https://www.nasa.gov/freedom250/ to learn more about where to spot the aircraft (dependent upon availability and flying schedules):
NASA’s F-15, right, and F/A-18 aircraft are shown at International Aerospace Coatings Inc.’s facility in Spokane, Washington, on Thursday, July 2, 2026, with new red, white, and blue paint to celebrate America’s 250th birthday. The aircraft, from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, participated in the Freedom 250 flyover in Washington on Saturday, July 4, 2026, with other NASA and military aircraft. NASA/Jim Ross
NASA/Jim Ross
NASA’s F-15 aircraft is shown at International Aerospace Coatings Inc.’s facility in Spokane, Washington, on Thursday, July 2, 2026, with new red, white, and blue paint to celebrate America’s 250th birthday. The aircraft, from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, participated in the Freedom 250 flyover in Washington on Saturday, July 4, 2026, with other NASA and military aircraft. NASA/Jim Ross
NASA/Jim Ross
NASA’s F-18 aircraft is shown at International Aerospace Coatings Inc.’s facility in Spokane, Washington, on Thursday, July 2, 2026, with new red, white, and blue paint to celebrate America’s 250th birthday. The aircraft, from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, participated in the Freedom 250 flyover in Washington on Saturday, July 4, 2026, with other NASA and military aircraft. NASA/Jim Ross
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Matt Kamlet, an employee at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, sits atop the virtual reality passenger ride quality simulator during a study of air taxi motion Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. NASA recently completed a multi-year study to understand how large, sudden air taxi motion affects ride comfort.
NASA/Christopher LC Clark
No one wants to get into an uncomfortable aircraft. NASA research could help the emerging industry of air taxis —small, vertical-takeoff-and-landing aircraft meant for short trips — understand the relationship between comfort and willingness to fly.
That’s where NASA comes in, with data that can help identify how to plan air taxi rides that can keep travelers feeling good.
NASA was able to gather that data by putting its own employees through some rough virtual flights. At the agency’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, volunteers have been strapping into a virtual reality motion simulator to experience the sudden shifts and tilts that tomorrow’s air taxis could encounter, showing researchers those moments feel from a passenger’s point of view.
Their reactions are giving NASA new insight into how aircraft motion influences comfort and confidence in flight — for instance, that certain kinds of large, sudden motions can be especially bothersome. Using that data, the team developed new models linking those sudden motions to passengers’ willingness to fly. The models can help guide future aircraft design and flight operations, letting producers know what maneuvers will be too jarring for future air taxi riders.
Large, sudden movements can also come from gusting winds or landings. The NASA data allows researchers to estimate when passengers may begin to feel uncomfortable as motion increases, giving them the ability to shape aircraft designs and operations to minimize the impact of those situations.
“Through this study and others, we are starting to identify passenger comfort thresholds for aggressive flight motion,” said Curtis Hanson, NASA Armstrong lead researcher for this effort. “We can begin to make predictions about how air taxis should fly so that most passengers will find the experience enjoyable and want to ride again, which will benefit the public and the industry.”
In the simulator, each participant experienced four levels of their aircraft pitching up and down, tilting from side-to-side, rotating, or accelerating quickly into a climb or a dive during flights from downtown San Francisco to Alcatraz Island in California. Even moderate changes in these motions reduced comfort for some participants, while others remained comfortable at higher levels. Participants rated each flight on a five-point scale and identified which motions felt uncomfortable.
Participants were asked whether they would take a real air taxi flight with motion they find uncomfortable. Their answers suggested that today’s travelers may be less tolerant of rough motion than airline passengers 50 years ago, based on comparisons with earlier NASA ride-quality research.
This latest feedback builds on a multiyear NASA study to better understand air taxi passenger comfort. The overall research effort found clear relationships between specific aircraft motions and how comfortable people feel during flight.
This work is currently led under the Subsonic Vehicle Technologies and Tools project in NASA’s Research and Technology Mission Directorate and contributes to the agency’s advanced air mobility research.
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