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North American X15

450 Tpierce  6.0 years ago

The North American X-15 was a hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft operated by the United States Air Force and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration as part of the X-plane series of experimental aircraft. The X-15 set speed and altitude records in the 1960s, reaching the edge of outer space and returning with valuable data used in aircraft and spacecraft design. The X-15's official world record for the highest speed ever recorded by a manned, powered aircraft, set in October 1967 when William J. Knight flew Mach 6.72 at 102,100 feet (31,120 m), a speed of 4,520 miles per hour (7,274 km/h; 2,021 m/s), has remained unchallenged as of November 2018.

Flying Instructions: Detach group 1 before starting the engine so the plane is released. Then fly it around at Mach 3 and come back in for a nice landing on the retractable gear. Air brakes were added to slow the plane for landing.

General Characteristics

  • Created On Android
  • Wingspan 24.3ft (7.4m)
  • Length 50.9ft (15.5m)
  • Height 12.0ft (3.7m)
  • Empty Weight 33,817lbs (15,339kg)
  • Loaded Weight 36,991lbs (16,779kg)

Performance

  • Power/Weight Ratio 4.374
  • Wing Loading 243.9lbs/ft2 (1,190.9kg/m2)
  • Wing Area 151.7ft2 (14.1m2)
  • Drag Points 3889

Parts

  • Number of Parts 54
  • Control Surfaces 4
  • Performance Cost 329