The starting process of the flow in an expansion nozzle (nominal Mach number 6) with an outlet diameter of 1.5 m and 8.9 m length, which is used for a large-scale hypersonic shock tunnel in the Key Laboratory of High-Temperature Gas Dynamics, was simulated and analyzed at incident Mach number M-s = 3.9. The calculating domains include the driven section (the shock-tube end, about 4.8m length), the nozzle with about 8.9 m length, and part of the test section (more than 3 m). The characteristics of unsteady nozzle flow, including the shock wave patterns in the nozzle inlet region and inside the nozzle, were analyzed numerically in the viscous and inviscid flow regimes, respectively. The pressure and Mach number results were presented and discussed by comparing with the experimental findings, where the simulated results of the reflected shock wave in the shock tube and the transmitted shock wave inside the nozzle were found to agree well with the test data. Additionally, the case without a contraction section for the throat configuration was also calculated and compared with the case with a contraction section. The effect of the starting flow in these two cases on the flowfield uniformity is discussed in detail in this paper.