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[Khalifa Jayy]

As of 2014, the X-15 holds the official world record for the highest speed ever reached by a manned, powered aircraft. Its maximum speed was 4,520 miles per hour (7,274 km/h).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_X-15

Actually, I'm not even mad... that's amazing.

Some of the dudes who flew this thing gained ASTRONAUT status. That's freaking amazing!

During the X-15 program, 13 flights by eight pilots met the Air Force spaceflight criterion by exceeding the altitude of 50 miles (80 km), thus qualifying the pilots for astronaut status. The Air Force pilots qualified for astronaut wings immediately, while the civilian pilots were awarded NASA astronaut wings in 2005, 35 years after the last X-15 flight. The sole Navy pilot in the X-15 program never took the aircraft above the requisite 50 mile altitude.[2][3]

Of all the X-15 missions, two flights (by the same pilot) qualified as space flights per the international (Fédération Aéronautique Internationale) definition of a spaceflight by exceeding 100 kilometers (62.1 mi) in altitude.

Anyone out there got a good airplane book to recommend?

 

[Log4Girlz]

Officially

 

[Joe Shlabotnik]

Fuel is expensive so no one gives a shit about making fast planes

 

[Darth Pinche]

Well, it was basically a rocket flying sideways. Not to diminish its record, but it could not take off, only be dropped like a missile.

 

[Mully]

The X-37B probably has it beat, or something we won't know about for another ten years.

 

[DeaconKnowledge]

Nobody gives a shit about this anymore. That's why.

 

[Khalifa Jayy]

Nobody gives a shit about this anymore. That's why.

That sucks, to be honest.

 

[A Fish Aficionado]

Read Chuck Yeager's bio a long time ago and those guys in the X programs had balls.

 

[DUFFMCWALIN]

That sucks, to be honest.

It really does. 40's through 60's gave us some incredible technology, sadly at the expense of a lot of lives.

 

[Khalifa Jayy]

It really does. 40's through 60's gave us some incredible technology, sadly at the expense of a lot of lives.

Land speed records on the flats.
Faster, quicker, higher on airplanes.
Going to the freaking moon in 1969.

And yet, we just had two (three?) spacecraft blow up this year alone, probably dismaying any attempts for a good while. Damn it.

 

[Ace Harding]

Anyone out there got a good airplane book to recommend?

Not necessarily an "airplane book" but I've been meaning to read The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe. I loved the movie as a kid. It's about test pilots, breaking the sound barrier, starting NASAs space flight program and the Space Race. It's been sitting on my dresser for a few months now

But if you think the X-15 and the fact that it still holds the speed record after all this time is cool then you'd dig the book.

 

[Ovid]

Snails pace compared to interstellar travel.

 

[desertdroog]

Land speed records on the flats.
Faster, quicker, higher on airplanes.
Going to the freaking moon in 1969.

And yet, we just had two (three?) spacecraft blow up this year alone, probably dismaying any attempts for a good while. Damn it.

Bonneville is still a relevant and active race track, even though Speedweek was rained out this year. I know a team who weren't able to run this year as a result of the weather, but are going after a record next year. The neatest thing about Bonneville, is that there are class records that are still held today, made in the 50's.

 

[Khalifa Jayy]

Not necessarily an "airplane book" but I've been meaning to read The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe. I loved the movie as a kid. It's about test pilots, breaking the sound barrier, starting NASAs space flight program and the Space Race. It's been sitting on my dresser for a few months now

But if you think the X-15 and the fact that it still holds the speed record after all this time is cool then you'd dig the book.

Well, let me borrow it then

I'll check it out on Amazon.

 

[ThoseDeafMutes]

The principles of aerodynamics haven't changed since 1959, and modern aircraft are not required to fulfil missions that involve hypersonic flight. The X-15 was a sort of test-bed, it was not specifically for any useful ongoing mission beyond hypersonic research. We have built effective space planes carrying out various missions, and we have built rockets that can reach the outer solar system, but there is no pressing need to build things just to "break a record". Assuming they even could.

 

[Poodlestrike]

They probably have, honestly. The thing is, the US isn't in (as much of) a pissing contest with Russia anymore, so they have no particular reason to publicize it-- or, at least, they think that telling people about the fancy new tech would do more harm than the potential PR gain would help.

 

[Graphics Horse]

The X-37B probably has it beat, or something we won't know about for another ten years.

That's a spacecraft though, which all orbit a lot faster than the X-15 flew. I think being able to build spacecraft is part of the reason it's not a big thing anymore. It's also unmanned, which might be another reason, we don't really need manned planes that fly that fast when drones can be flown remotely or autonomously.