Our Aug. 17, 1953, issue featured a mammoth special report on the Air Research and Development Command (ARDC), the two-year-old organization established by the U.S. Air Force to overhaul its approach to research and development with a goal of achieving technical superiority.

The cover of the 450-page issue featured a color photo of a dozen test aircraft and six “crack test pilots”—including Maj. Charles Yeager, on the bottom left—gathered on the surface of Rogers Dry Lake next to Edwards AFB, California.

The aircraft included the Northrop X-4, Convair XF-92A Delta, North American T-28A, Lockheed F-80, Republic F-84F, North American F-86D, Northrop F-89, Lockheed F-94C, Boeing B-47, North American B-45, Boeing KC-97 and Convair B-36D.

The ARDC was renamed Air Force Systems Command in 1961 and was deactivated and merged back into the Air Force Materiel Command in 1992.

If you're a subscriber, you can read the report on page 72. 

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