The present paper analyze the starting behavior of a two-dimensional mixed compression inlet when operated at off-design condition, by adapting a simple technique of rotating the cowl around an axis placed upstream of the fixed throat. By closing the cowl thereby altering the capture area of the inlet, the inlet in the unstarted condition was restarted and continuously operated in the started condition. To further improve the performance the cowl is rotated back and the inlet remained in started condition for higher contraction ratio also. To understand the flow starting behavior high speed images were used along with synchronized surface pressure data taken along the model. To understand the effect of cowl rotation rate on starting the inlet, cowl is rotated at different rotation rates from 20 to 50 degrees per second. The result shows the starting angle is independent of cowl rotation rate. © 2016, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Inc, AIAA. All rights reserved.