First published in 2003 as a volume in the NASA "Monograph in Aerospace History" series. This study contains photographs and illustrations.

This is the story of the amazing life of my Great Grandmother Maria as told to me by my beloved Grandmother and Maria's daughter, Grace. Maria was raised in an Orphanage from the age of 6 in Palermo Sicily at the turn of the 20th century after the loss of her mother and the conviction of her father for a murder he did not commit. As Maria grew into adulthood she would eventually meet the man that was to become her husband, Nicholas Bono, a respected man as they say in Sicilian culture for men involved in Cosa Nostra or the Mafia. Nicholas was an underboss for one of the most notorious mobsters of the day, Al Capone. Although her story tells of the many adventures Maria experienced as a Mafia wife, It's is also a love story and speaks to the eternal and undying love Maria had for her Family. La Famiglia

For a while, it seemed the series of experimental aircraft sponsored by the U.S. government had run its course. Between the late 1940s and the late 1970s, almost thirty designations had been allocated to aircraft meant to explore new flight regimes or untried technologies. Then, largely, it ended. But there was a resurgence in the mid- to late- 1990s, and as we enter the fourth year of the new millennia, the designations are up to X-50.

For a while, it seemed the series of experimental aircraft sponsored by the U. S. government had run its course. Between the late 1940s and the late 1970s, almost thirty designations had been allocated to aircraft meant to explore new flight regimes or untried technologies. Then, largely, it ended. But there was a resurgence in the mid- to late1990s, and as we enter the fourth year of the new millennia, the designations are up to X-50. Many have a misconception that X-vehicles have always explored the high-speed and high-altitude flight regimes-something popularized by Chuck Yeager in the original X-1 and the exploits of the twelve men that flew the X-15. Although these flight regimes have always been in the spotlight, many others have been explored by X-vehicles. The little Bensen X-25 never exceeded 85 mph, and others were limited to speeds of several hundred mph. There has been some criticism that the use of X designations has been corrupted somewhat by including what are essentially prototypes of future operational aircraft, especially the two JSF demonstrators. But this is not new-the X-11 and X-12 from the 1950s were going to be prototypes of the Atlas intercontinental ballistic missile, and the still-born Lockheed X-27 was always intended as a prototype of a production aircraft. So although this practice does not represent the best use of "X" designations, it is not without precedent.

First published in 2003 as a volume in the NASA "Monograph in Aerospace History" series. This study contains photographs and illustrations.