The single-seat F-16XL, NASA 849, joins up with an SR-71A, NASA 844, as crews set up for one of the flights in the recent sonic boom research program conducted by the Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California.

During the missions, the F-16XL probed the shockwaves generated by the SR-71, while at lower altitudes sensors on an F-18 and on a YO-3A, and also on the ground, recorded data from the same shockwave.