The Raspet Flight Research Laboratory (RFRL) is one of the premier university flight research facilities in the country. Established at Mississippi State University over 50 years ago, this aeronautical research laboratory possesses a rich heritage in full-scale flight vehicle development and test, advanced composites development and fabrication, computer-controlled manufacturing, and test of prototype composite applications. RFRL has demonstrated expertise in the design, build and test of prototype composite structures and components, and possesses unique capabilities in the areas of flight research and testing of manned and unmanned fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft.
The RFRL facility is located at the Starkville Municipal airport and encompasses over 90,000 square feet of enclosed laboratory space. The 35,000-square-foot Raspet Flight Research Laboratory provides office and hangar space and houses the precision machine shop, an autoclave, the 5-axis mill/polisher and lay-up room. The 55,000-square-foot RFRL Annex building also provides office space, engineering bays and hangar space. In addition, it houses the 10'x55' autoclave, an oven, 2,450 square feet of temperature and humidity-controlled cutting and lay-up rooms, an aircraft assembly room and a structural test room.
The location at Starkville Municipal airport provides ready access to a 5,500-foot runway for flight operations. It is also a location that is out of the way of heavy air traffic areas and major population centers and provides adequate flight test space and reduced operational visibility. The location in the vicinity of Mississippi State University provides ready access to engineering faculty, undergraduate and graduate students, and other research organizations that can team with or provide support to RFRL research operations.
Mississippi State University's research capabilities, especially its 50-year-old Raspet Flight Research Laboratory, played a key role in luring Aurora Flight Sciences to the Golden Triangle, and offer even more opportunities for future economic development.
http://ae.msstate.edu/rfrl/index.html
The RFRL facility is located at the Starkville Municipal airport and encompasses over 90,000 square feet of enclosed laboratory space. The 35,000-square-foot Raspet Flight Research Laboratory provides office and hangar space and houses the precision machine shop, an autoclave, the 5-axis mill/polisher and lay-up room. The 55,000-square-foot RFRL Annex building also provides office space, engineering bays and hangar space. In addition, it houses the 10'x55' autoclave, an oven, 2,450 square feet of temperature and humidity-controlled cutting and lay-up rooms, an aircraft assembly room and a structural test room.
The location at Starkville Municipal airport provides ready access to a 5,500-foot runway for flight operations. It is also a location that is out of the way of heavy air traffic areas and major population centers and provides adequate flight test space and reduced operational visibility. The location in the vicinity of Mississippi State University provides ready access to engineering faculty, undergraduate and graduate students, and other research organizations that can team with or provide support to RFRL research operations.
Mississippi State University's research capabilities, especially its 50-year-old Raspet Flight Research Laboratory, played a key role in luring Aurora Flight Sciences to the Golden Triangle, and offer even more opportunities for future economic development.
http://ae.msstate.edu/rfrl/index.html
