Originally known as the National Aeronautical Laboratory, it assumed its present name with the addition of the Aerospace Division in 1963.
[1][2] Since its establishment, it has pursued research on aircraft, rockets, and other aeronautical transportation systems, as well as peripheral technology.
[2][3] NAL was involved in the development of the autonomous ALFLEX aircraft[4][5] and the cancelled HOPE-X spaceplane.
The NAL, in collaboration with Fujitsu, developed the Numerical Wind Tunnel parallel supercomputer system, which went into operation in 1993.
[12][13][14][15] On October 1, 2003, NAL, which had focused on research and development of next-generation aviation, merged with the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS), and the National Space Development Agency (NASDA) of Japan into one Independent Administrative Institution: the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).