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For years I (and I'm assuming many others also) thought that the record in airspeed was made by the SR-71 (Mach 3+). Being that the Mach 5 Aurora was never unveiled and remains a myth only adds support to the SR-71. But, according to this article, people have actually made controlled flights at over Mach 6. (Mach 6.72, 4530 MPH to be exact.) Check it out:

http://www.acepilots.com/planes/x15.html#top

"Retreat, hell! We just got here!"-Captain Lloyd Williams, 2nd Marine Division, Belleau Wood, France, WWI

I am not a stick actuator by any stretch of da 'magination but it seems to me that there is a difference between a pilot and a passenger.

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YGBSM !

The X-15 had a rocket motor...maybe that's why the SR holds the record...I don't know...

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If you can't go fast...go Ugly

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Yeah BG, back when this country could get things done in aerospace, the mickey mouse was cut to the minimum. I was an impressionable child then. The National Geographic magazine had very good articles on the X-15, Mercury and Gemini projects and I couldn't wait to get the next issue. The X-15 had 199 flights, a lot of danger, some loss of life, some broken hardware, and a lot of (apparently obscure to most people) achievements. I guess I don't understand Hawg166's comment. The X-15 wasn't ballistic, it was totally under pilot control, even in space. I think the SR-71 records are for airbreathing engine vehicles that take off and climb under there own power. There's lots of special class records out there. Incredibly, the C-130J holds some currently. The space shuttle probably holds some record for being a Mach 25 glider.

Mc/I + P/A

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<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote><font size=1 face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote>Yeah BG, back when this country could get things done in aerospace, the mickey mouse was cut to the minimum. <hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size=2 id=quote>

Could you elaborate for the curious?

He means that political considerations were secondary to actual performance.

Right A-10?

"Trample the wounded...hurdle the dead"

You mean things actually got done? Amazing!

"Retreat, hell! We just got here!"-Captain Lloyd Williams, 2nd Marine Division, Belleau Wood, France, WWI

<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote><font size=1 face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote>
He means that political considerations were secondary to actual performance.

Right A-10?
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Roger that.

Mc/I + P/A

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That's funny, cause nowadays, if GWB said he'd put a person on Mars in 10 years, they wouldn't be able to decide on a staff to buy donuts for three and a half years.

"Retreat, hell! We just got here!"-Captain Lloyd Williams, 2nd Marine Division, Belleau Wood, France, WWI

[quote]
He means that political considerations were secondary to actual performance.

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Naw, blame it on the bureaucRATS. BG Chuck Yeager has remarked more than a few times, in today's environment he could never have flown the X-1 supersonic. Chuck had his engineer SWAG it some if he could take off in the X-1, hit supersonic, and really piss off the Navy. He did and slow rolled the bird in front of the Navy.

This was back in the days of slide rules and thinking. Now how far along is the Raptor and high speed computers? ROFL.

Jack

Um, what's a SWAG?

"Retreat, hell! We just got here!"-Captain Lloyd Williams, 2nd Marine Division, Belleau Wood, France, WWI

The Kennedy speech got us to the moon, but I always felt it did irrepairable harm to aerospace research in the US.

"We sleep safely in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would harm us". George Orwell

Fighting For Justice With Brains Of Steel !
<img src="http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ac/atengun2X.GIF" border=0>

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The only time you have too much fuel is when you're on fire.

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...This was back in the days of slide rules and thinking. Now how far along is the Raptor and high speed computers? ROFL.

Jack
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Thats funny you talk about "slide rules" at a briefing I gave Monday our Col. talked about "the old days" and developing aircraft the old fashioned way with "slide rules" and not some "damn computer" as he put it...

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If you can't go fast...go Ugly

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Thats funny you talk about "slide rules" at a briefing I gave Monday our Col. talked about "the old days" and developing aircraft the old fashioned way with "slide rules" and not some "damn computer" as he put it...

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Not many pilots ever fly without a circular slide rule. NACA actually had most of the rules of aero in place long before NASA. Puters are very helpful. No doubt Burt Rutan uses them and his brain.

SWAG=sciencitifc wild ass guess.

Jack

Right. Thankx.

"Retreat, hell! We just got here!"-Captain Lloyd Williams, 2nd Marine Division, Belleau Wood, France, WWI