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Flight airspeed record

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The SR-71 Blackbird is the current record-holder for a manned airbreathing jet aircraft.

An air speed record is the highest airspeed attained by an aircraft of a particular class. The rules for all official aviation records are defined by Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI),[1] which also ratifies any claims. Speed records are divided into multiple classes with sub-divisions. There are three classes of aircraft: landplanes, seaplanes and amphibians; then within these classes, there are records for aircraft in a number of weight categories. 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 and New York.

Timeline

Date Pilot Airspeed Aircraft Location
mph km/h
1903 Wilbur Wright 6.82 10.98 Wright Flyer Kitty Hawk, NC, USA
1905 Wilbur Wright 37.85 60.91 Wright Flyer III
12 November 1906 Alberto Santos-Dumont 25.65 41.292 Santos-Dumont First officially recognised airspeed record[2]
26 October 1907 Henry Farman 32.73 52.700 Voisin biplane [2]
1908 Henry Farman 40.26 64.79 Voisin biplane [citation needed]
25 May 1909 P Tissander 34.04 54.810 Wright [2]
23 August 1909 Glenn Curtiss 43.367 69.821 Curtiss No. 2 1909 Gordon Bennett Cup, Reims, France[2][3]
24 August 1909 Louis Blériot 46.160 74.318 Blériot XI [2]
28 August 1909 Louis Blériot 47.823 76.995 Blériot XI [2]
23 April 1910 Hubert Latham 48.186 77.579 Antoinette [2]
10 July 1910 L Morane 66.154 106.508 Blériot [2]
29 October 1910 Alfred Leblanc 68.171 109.756 Blériot XI [2]
12 April 1911 Alfred Leblanc 69.442 111.801 Blériot Blériot [2]
11 May 1911 Edouard Nieuport 73.385 119.760 Nieuport [2]
12 June 1911 Alfred Leblanc 77.640 125.000 Blériot [2]
16 June 1911 Edouard Nieuport 80.781 130.057 Nieuport [2]
21 June 1911 Edouard Nieuport 82.693 133.136 Nieuport Nie-2 N [2]
13 January 1912 Jules Vedrines 87.68 145.161 Deperdussin Monocoque [2]
22 February 1912 Jules Vedrines 100.18 161.290 Deperdussin Monocoque [2]
29 February 1912 Jules Vedrines 100.90 162.454 Deperdussin Monocoque [2]
1 March 1912 Jules Vedrines 103.62 166.821 Deperdussin Monocoque [2]
2 March 1912 Jules Vedrines 104.29 167.910 Deperdussin Monocoque [2]
13 July 1912 Jules Vedrines 106.07 170.777 Deperdussin Monocoque [2]
9 September 1912 Jules Vedrines 108.14 174.100 Deperdussin Monocoque [2]
17 June 1913 Maurice Prévost 111.69 179.820 Deperdussin Monocoque [2]
27 September 1913 Maurice Prévost 119.19 191.897 Deperdussin Monocoque [2]
29 September 1913 Maurice Prévost 126.61 203.850 Deperdussin Monocoque [2]
1914 Norman Spratt 134.5 216.5 RAF SE.4
August 1918 Roland Rohlfs 163 262.3 Curtiss Wasp [4] Not officially recognised.
1919 Joseph Sadi-Lecointe 191.1 307.5 Nieuport-Delage 29v
8 February 1920 Joseph Sadi-Lecointe 171.0 275.264 Nieuport-Delage NiD 29 Villacoublay, France.[5] First official record post World War 1.[2]
28 February 1920 J Casale 176.1 283.464 Spad-Herbemont Villacoublay, France[2][6]
9 October 1920 Bernard de Romanet 181.8 292.682 Spad-Herbemont Buc, France[2][7]
10 October 1920 Joseph Sadi-Lecointe 184.3 296.694 Nieuport-Delage 29 [2]
20 October 1920 Joseph Sadi-Lecointe 187.9 302.529 Nieuport-Delage 29 [2]
4 November 1920 Bernard de Romanet 191.9 309.012 Spad S.20 Buc, France[2][8]
12 December 1920 Joseph Sadi-Lecointe 194.4 313.043 Nieuport-Delage 29 [2]
26 September 1921 Joseph Sadi-Lecointe 205.2 330.275 Nieuport-Delage [9]
13 October 1922 Billy Mitchell 222.88 358.836 Curtiss R Detroit[2][10]
18 October 1922 Billy Mitchell 224.28 360.93 Curtiss R-6 [11][12]
15 February 1923 Joseph Sadi-Lecointe 232.91 375.00 Nieuport-Delage Istres[10]
29 March 1923 Russell Maughan 236.587 380.74 Curtiss R-6 [13][14]
2 November 1923 H. J. Rowe 259.16 417.07 Curtiss R2C-1 [15]
4 November 1923 Alford J. Williams 266.59 429.02 Curtiss R2C-1 [15][16]
11 November 1924 Florentin Bonnet 278.37 448.171 Bernard Ferbois V2 [2]
4 November 1927 Mario de Bernardi 297.70 479.290 Macchi M.52 [2]
30 March 1928 Mario de Bernardi 318.620 512.776 Macchi M.52bis [17]
10 September 1929 George H. Stainforth 336.3 541.4 Gloster VI Calshot, UK[18]
12 September 1929 Augustus Orlebar 357.7 575.5 Supermarine S.6 seaplane Calshot, UK[19]
1929 Giuseppe Motta 362.0 582.6 Macchi M.67
13 September 1931 George H. Stainforth 407.5 655.8 Supermarine S.6B seaplane Lee-on-the-Solent, UK[20]
1933 Francesco Agello 424 682 Macchi M.C.72 seaplane
1934 Francesco Agello 440.6 709.0 Macchi M.C.72 seaplane
1935 Howard Hughes 352 566 Hughes H-1 Racer landplane – Not an Official FAI record
26 April 1939 Fritz Wendel 469.220 755.138 Me 209 V1 Augsburg[21]
1941 Heini Dittmar 623.65 1003.67 Rocket powered – Not an Official FAI record but over the 3 km FAI distance Messerschmitt Me 163A V4 Peenemünde[22][23][24]
1944 Heinz Herlitzius 624 1004 Not an Official FAI record Messerschmitt Me 262 S2 Leipheim [25]
1944 Heini Dittmar 702 1130 Rocket powered – Not an Official FAI record Messerschmitt Me 163B V18 Lagerlechfeld [25]
7 November 1945 H. J. Wilson 606.4 975.9 Gloster Meteor F Mk4 Herne Bay, UK[26]
7 September 1946 Edward Mortlock Donaldson 615.78 990.79 Gloster Meteor F Mk4 Littlehampton, UK[26]
19 June 1947 Col. Albert Boyd 623.74 1003.60 Lockheed P-80R Shooting Star Muroc, California, USA[27]
20 August 1947 Cmdr. Turner Caldwell 640.663 1031.049 Douglas Skystreak Muroc, California, USA[28]
25 August 1947 Major Marion Eugene Carl USMC 650.796 1047.356 Douglas Skystreak Muroc, California, USA[28]
1947 Chuck Yeager 670.0 1078 Bell X-1 – Rocket powered – Not an official FAI C-1 record Muroc, California,

USA

1948 Maj. Richard L. Johnson, USAF 670.84 1079.6 North American F-86A-3 Sabre Cleveland, USA[29]
1952 J. Slade Nash 698.5 1,124.1 North American F-86D Sabre Salton Sea, USA
1953 William Barnes 715.7 1,151.8 North American F-86D Sabre Salton Sea, USA
7 September 1953 Neville Duke 727.6 1,171 Hawker Hunter F Mk3 Littlehampton, UK[30]
26 September 1953 Mike Lithgow 735.7 1,184 Supermarine Swift F4 Castel Idris, Tripoli, Libya[31]
3 October 1953 James B. Verdin, US Navy 752.9 1,211.5 Douglas F4D Skyray Salton Sea, USA[32]
October 1953 Frank K. Everest USAF 755.1 1,215.3 North American F-100 Super Sabre Salton Sea, USA
From this point records are set at altitude and not sea level.
October 1955 Horace A. Hanes 822.1 1,323 North American F-100C Super Sabre Palmdale, USA
10 March 1956 Peter Twiss 1,132 1,822 Fairey Delta 2 Chichester, UK[33]
December 1957 USAF 1,207.6 1,943.5 McDonnell F-101A Voodoo Edwards Air Force Base, USA[34]
May 1958 Cap. WW Irwin, USAF 1,404 2,259.5 Lockheed F-104C Starfighter Edwards Air Force Base, USA
31 October 1959 Col. Georgii Mosolov 1,484 2,388 Ye-66 (proto Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21) USSR[35]
December 1959 Maj. Joseph Rogers, USAF 1,525.9 2,455.7 Convair F-106 Delta Dart Edwards Air Force Base, USA
22 November 1961 Robert G. Robinson, US Navy 1606.3 2585.1 Modified McDonnell-Douglas F-4 Phantom II Edwards Air Force Base, USA[36]
7 July 1962 Col. Georgii Mosolov 1665.9 2681 Mikoyan Gurevich Ye-166 – name adopted for the record attempt, originally a version of a Ye-152 USSR[21][37]
1 May 1965 Robert L. Stephens
and Daniel Andre		 2,070.1 3,331.5 Lockheed YF-12A Edwards AFB, USA[38]
28 July 1976 Capt. Eldon W. Joersz and Maj. George T. Morgan 2,193.2 3,529.6 Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird #61-7958 Beale AFB, USA[39]

Official records versus unofficial

The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird holds the official Air Speed Record for a manned airbreathing jet aircraft with a speed of 3,530 km/h (2,194 mph). It 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.[40]

For a period of time, during and immediately following World War II, the unpublicised and unofficial speed record of 1004.5 km/h (623.8 mph) set by the Messerschmitt Me 163AV4 (the third prototype) rocket aircraft, on October 2, 1941 was actually the fastest velocity any aircraft had been measured as traveling to that time. That figure, set during wartime when no records were being ratified, was achieved by the Me 163A V4 at altitude rather than sea-level as it had been towed by a Bf 110 to set the record. Many record attempts were stated as being "set" after World War II by such aircraft as the Gloster Meteor, which exceeded the 755 km/h (469 mph) velocity record of the pre-war holder (the Messerschmitt Me 209 V1 piston engined aircraft) but the first to actually exceed the Me 163 A V4 claim was the Douglas Skystreak on August 20, 1947.

The fastest manned atmospheric vehicle of all time was the Apollo command module as it returned from the moon, reaching speeds of around Mach 30. Although it used the air largely as a brake, it did also achieve a lift to drag ratio of around 0.368[41] which was used to control the flight trajectory. However this is probably very different from most people's idea of an 'aircraft'.

Other air speed records

Year Pilot Airspeed Aircraft Comments
mph km/h
1960 Ivan Soukhomline (USSR) 541.45 871.38 Tupolev Tu-114 Fastest propeller-driven aircraft
1967 'Pete' Knight 4,510 7,274 North American X-15 Rocket plane; incapable of breathing air
1981-present Multiple 17,500 28,000 Space Shuttle Speed attained during atmospheric reentry
August 11, 1986 John Egginton 249.1 400.87 Westland Lynx 800 G-LYNX Fastest helicopter[42]
December 31, 1988 L.P. Krantov 258.8 415 Tupolev Tu-134A Fastest landing speed record (76 passengers aboard, no one harmed)[43]
August 21, 1989 Lyle Shelton 528 850 F8F Bearcat Rare Bear Fastest straight-line piston-engined aircraft
November 16, 2004 Unmanned 7,546 12,144 NASA X-43a Air-launched hypersonic scramjet
December 22, 2006 Klaus Ohlmann & Matias Garcia Mazzaro 190.6 306.8 Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-4DM Fastest glider (sailplane) over 500km[44]
September 15, 2010 Kevin Bredenbeck 299 481 Sikorsky X2 Fastest compound helicopter (unofficial)[45]

See also

References

  1. ^ FAI Web sie Accessed 25 Jan 2011
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah Cooper Flight 25 May 1951, p. 619.
  3. ^ Bowers 1979, pp. 37–38
  4. ^ Bowers 1979, p. 140.
  5. ^ The Royal Aero Club of the U.K.:Official Notices to Members". Flight, 16 December 1920. p. 1274.
  6. ^ "Speed Records in France". Flight, 4 March 1920.
  7. ^ "Meeting at Buc". Flight, 14 October 1920, pp. 1090–1091.
  8. ^ "De Romanet Breaks Records". Flight, 11 November 1920, p. 1166.
  9. ^ "Some Records Homologated". Flight, 3 November 1921, p. 710.
  10. ^ a b Flight 7 February 1924, p. 75.
  11. ^ Bowers 1979, pp. 232–233.
  12. ^ "American World's Speed Record Homologated". Flight, 11 January 1923, p. 26.
  13. ^ Bowers 1979, p.233.
  14. ^ "Records Homologated". Flight, 28 June 1923, p. 356.
  15. ^ a b Bowers 1979, p. 235.
  16. ^ Flight. 27 December 1923, p.776.
  17. ^ Robertson, F.A. de V. "The Attempt on the World's Speed Record". Flight, 8 November 1928, pp. 965–967.
  18. ^ James 1971, p.188.
  19. ^ Andrews and Morgan 1987, p.194.
  20. ^ Andrews and Morgan 1987, p. 201.
  21. ^ a b Taylor 1965, p. 346.
  22. ^ Ferdinand C.W. Käsmann, Die schnellsten Jets der Welt p.122 ISBN 3-925505-26-1 1994
  23. ^ Heini Dittmar
  24. ^ Wolfgang Späte, Der streng geheime Vogel Me 163 p.32,33 ISBN 3-895-55142-2 1983
  25. ^ a b Ferdinand C.W. Käsmann Die schnellsten Jets der Welt p.122 ISBN 3-925505-26-1 1994
  26. ^ a b Mason 1992, p. 340.
  27. ^ Young, James O. (2007). "Milestones in Aerospace History at Edwards AFB" (PDF). Air Force Flight Test Center History Office. Retrieved 2008-07-14. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |month= (help)
  28. ^ a b Francillon 1979, p.438.
  29. ^ Jackson, Robert (1994). F-86 Sabre: The Operational Record. Smithsonian Institution Press.
  30. ^ Mason 1992, p. 370.
  31. ^ Mason 1992, p. 366.
  32. ^ Francillon 1979, p.476.
  33. ^ Taylor 1974, p. 432.
  34. ^ Francillon 1979, p. 544.
  35. ^ Belyakov and Marmain 1994, pp. 298, 300.
  36. ^ Francillon 1979, p. 572.
  37. ^ Belyakov and Marmain 1994, pp. 274–275.
  38. ^ Taylor 1976, p. 72.
  39. ^ Taylor 1988, p. [51].
  40. ^ "Current air speed record". Retrieved 2006-10-18.
  41. ^ Hillje, Ernest R., "Entry Aerodynamics at Lunar Return Conditions Obtained from the Flight of Apollo 4 (AS-501)," NASA TN D-5399, (1969).
  42. ^ FAI rotorcraft absolute record
  43. ^ Л.Л. Селяков. "Человек, среда, машина" Самолет Ту-134А №65011
  44. ^ FAI web-site - Accessed 25 Jan 2011
  45. ^ Croft, John (September 15, 2010). "Sikorsky X2 hits 250kt goal". Flight International. Retrieved 2010-09-16.
  • Andrews, C.F. and E.B. Morgan. Supermarine Aircraft since 1914. London:Putnam, 1987. ISBN 0-85177-800-3.
  • Belyakov, R.A. and J. Marmain. MiG: Fifty Years of Secret Aircraft Design. Shrewsbury, UK:Airlife, 1994. ISBN 1-85310-488-4.
  • Bowers, Peter M. Curtiss Aircraft 1907–1947. London:Putnam, 1979. ISBN 0-370-10029-8.
  • Cooper, H.J. "The World's Speed Record". Flight, 25 May 1951, pp. 617–619.
  • "Eighteen Years of World's Records". Flight, 7 February 1924, pp. 73–75.
  • Francillon, René J. McDonnell Douglas Aircraft since 1920. London:Putnam, 1979. ISBN 0-370-00050-1.
  • James, Derek N. Gloster Aircraft since 1917. London:Putnam, 1971. ISBN 0-370-00084-6.
  • Mason, Francis K. The British Fighter since 1912. Annapolis Maryland, USA: Naval Instute Press, 1992. ISBN 1-55750-082-7.
  • Taylor, H. A. Fairey Aircraft since 1915. London:Putnam, 1974. ISBN 0-370-00065-x.
  • Taylor, John W. R. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1965–66. London:Sampson Low, Marston & Company, 1965.
  • Taylor, John W. R. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1976–77. London:Jane's Yearbooks, 1976. ISBN 0-354-00538-3.
  • Taylor, John W. R. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1988–89. Coulsdon, UK:Jane's Defence Data, 1988. ISBN 0-7106-0867-5.
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