An investigation was made to determine the effects of wing inboard plan-form modifications on the lift, drag, and longitudinal characteristics of a rocket-propelled free-flight model. The model had a body of fineness ration 17.4, a modified wing with a basic plan form swept back 52.5 degrees and an aspect ratio of 3, and inline horizontal tail surfaces which were aerodynamically pulsed continuously throughout the flight.

A free-flight investigation has been made to determine the effect of wing camber and twist at Mach numbers from 1.4 to 2.1 on the lift, drag, and longitudinal stability of a configuration having a 52.5 degree sweptback wing of aspect ratio 3, and inline tail surfaces. The wing was cambered and twisted to have low drag at a wing lift coefficient of 0.3 and at a Mach number of 1.46. The method reported in NACA Report 1226 was used to determine the wing warp. The model was aerodynamically pulsed in pitch throughout the flight of the model alone. Drag polars, normal force, pitching moment, static longitudinal stability, and wash effects at the horizontal tail were obtained. Comparisons are made with data from a similar model that had a flat (untwisted and uncambered) wing.

An analysis is presented of the influence of wing aspect ratio and tail location on the effects of compressibility upon static longitudinal stability. The investigation showed that the use of reduced wing aspect ratios or short tail lengths leads to serious reductions in high-speed stability and the possibility of high-speed instability.