About one-half the size of a standard manned fighter and powered by a small jet engine, the HiMAT vehicles were launched from NASA's B-52 carrier aircraft at an altitude of about 45,000 feet. They were flown remotely by a NASA research pilot from a ground station with the aid of a television camera mounted in the HiMAT cockpits.

Technologies tested on the HiMAT vehicles appearing later on other aircraft include the extensive use of composites common now on military and commercial aircraft; rear-mounted wing and forward canard configuration used very successfully on the X-29 research aircraft flown at Dryden; and winglets, now used on many private and commercial aircraft to lessen wingtip drag and enhance fuel savings.