Flight airspeed record
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
An air speed record is the highest speed attained by an aircraft of a particular class.
The rules for all official aviation records are defined by Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) and they also ratify any claims. There are three classes of aircraft: landplanes, seaplanes and amphibians and within these classes there are records for aircraft in several mass bands. There are still further sub-divisions for piston-engined, turbojet, turboprop and rocket-engined aircraft. Within each of these groups, records are defined for speed over a straight course and for closed circuits of various sizes carrying various payloads. There are still further records for the speed between specified cities such as London to New York.
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[edit] Official records versus unofficial
The SR-71 "Blackbird" holds the official Air Speed Record for a jet aircraft with a speed of 3,529.56 km/h (2,188 mph). It was a manned aircraft powered by air-breathing engines, and was capable of taking off and landing unassisted on conventional runways. The record was set on 28 July 1976 by Eldon W. Joersz near Beale Air Force Base, California, USA.<ref>Current air speed record. Retrieved on 2006-10-18.</ref>
However for many people the term 'air speed record' implies simply the fastest aircraft. Other aircraft have flown faster without breaking the official air speed record. This is because they do not comply with FAI rules. For example, experimental high-speed aircraft are often unable to take off under their own power, and require a carrier aircraft.
The Space Shuttle is the fastest aircraft, but it is unable to take off solely under its own power, requiring two solid rocket boosters during its ascent to orbit. During its ascent through the atmosphere the Shuttle's airspeed is under Mach 2. However, during re-entry it glides into the atmosphere at 17,500 miles per hour because of its residual orbital velocity. It is therefore not a conventional aircraft, as most people would consider the term.
The Boeing X-43A is the fastest air-breathing aircraft, having set a speed record of 11,200 km/h (7,000 mph), or Mach 9.68, on November 16, 2004. However, it is unmanned, and relies on a carrier aircraft to reach altitude, and a discardable booster rocket to reach the operating speed of its scramjet engine. It is also incapable of landing.
The rocket-powered X-15 was the fastest powered, manned aircraft, reaching a top speed of 7,274 km/h (4,510 mph) on October 3, 1967. However, it was a rocket-powered test aircraft incapable of taking off from the ground and was launched at altitude from a carrier aircraft and operated at the margins of the atmosphere.
[edit] Timeline
- 1903 Wilbur Wright at 9.8 miles per hour
- 1905 Wilbur Wright at 37.85 miles per hour in the Wright Flyer III
- 1908 Henry Farman at 40.26 miles per hour in the Voisin biplane
- 1909 Louis Bleriot at 47.82 miles per hour in the Bleriot XII
- 1910 Alfred Leblanc at 68.2 miles per hour in the Bleriot XI
- 1911 Edouard Nieuport at 82.73 miles per hour in the Nieuport Nie-2 N
- 1912 Jules Vedrines at 108.18 miles per hour in the Monocoque Deperdussin
- 1913 Maurice Prevost at 126.66 miles per hour in the Monocoque Deperdussin
- 1914 Norman Spratt at 134.54 miles per hour in the RAF SE.4
- 1918 Roland Rohlfs at 163.06 miles per hour in the Curtiss Wasp
- 1919 Joseph Sadi-Lecointe at 191.1 miles per hour in the Nieuport-Delage 29v
- 1920 Joseph Sadi-Lecointe at 194.49 miles per hour in the Nieuport-Delage 29v
- 1921 Joseph Sadi-Lecointe at 205.22 miles per hour in the Nieuport-Delage
- 1922 William Mitchell at 224.28 miles per hour in the Curtiss R-6
- 1923 Alford J. Williams at 267.16 miles per hour in the Curtiss R-2C-1
- 1924 Florentin Bonnet at 278.47 miles per hour in the Bernard Ferbois V2
- 1927 Mario de Bernardi at 297.83 miles per hour in the Macchi M.52
- 1928 Mario de Bernardi at 318.57 miles per hour in the Macchi M.52bis
- 1929 Guiseppe Motta at 362 miles per hour in the Macchi M.67
- 1931 George H. Stainforth at 407.5 mph (655.8 km/h) in the Supermarine S.6B seaplane, Lee-on-Solent, GB
- 1945 H. J. Wilson at 606.38 mph in Gloster Meteor F Mk4, Herne Bay, GB
- 1947 Captain Charles "Chuck" Yeager at 670 mph in Bell X-1 (first confirmed supersonic flight).
- 1953 Neville Duke at 727.63 mph in Hawker Hunter F Mk3 - Littlehampton, GB
From this point records are set at altitude and not sea level.
- 1955 Horace A Hanes 822.13 mph (first supersonic for a jet) in North American F-100C Super Sabre, Palmdale, USA
- 1956 Peter Twiss 1,132.13 mph in Fairey Delta 2, Chichester, GB
- 1965 Robert L Stephens & Daniel Andre 2,070.10 mph in Lockheed YF-12A, Edwards AFB, USA
- 1967 X-15 at 4,510 miles per hour (7,274 km/h)
- 1976 SR-71 flew near Beale AFB, USA at 2,188 mph (3,529.56 km/h), which is the highest of the current official air speed records
- 2004 NASA's X-43A hypersonic aircraft at 7,000 mph (11,200 km/h)
[edit] Helicopter
- 1986 Westland Lynx set helicopter world speed record of 400.87 km/h (249.09 mph)
[edit] See also
- Transcontinental airspeed record
- Land speed record
- Land speed record for railed vehicles
- Water speed record
- Underwater speed record
- Flight altitude record
[edit] Reference
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