There is a great deal of interest in the possibility of using plasmas for various aerospace applications ranging from drag reduction to power extraction. This paper outlines a series of experimental and modeling efforts that are directed toward determining the viability of these concepts. The first issue addressed is the question regarding anomalously high shock propagation speeds and shock splitting in weakly ionized gases that have been reported in the literature. Careful modeling and experiments of both steady-state and pulsed plasmas suggest that these observations are due to predictable effects from temperature gradients. The utilization of thermal plasmas for drag reduction, vehicle steering, and sonic boom mitigation, and cold, nonequilibrium plasmas for MHD flow control and power extraction are then discussed.