Airplanes are one of the most advanced technological gems that humanity has ever created. Each of them has their own specifications and specialties. In this post, I will point out the some of the fastest planes every existed in the World. The list includes Aircraft ranging from the best fighter jets to amazing experimental aircraft till date!
So let’s start.
10. MiG ye 152
Mikoyan-Gurevich Ye-152 was developed by Tumansky bureau(Former Soviet Russia) is one of the topmost contenders on the list. It was powered by Tumansky R-15-300 engine. The proposed speed was Mach=3.0. It was designed as an all-weather high-altitude interceptor based on the research aircraft. It had a ceiling of 22500m. It could go up to 74 thousand feet into the sky and climb at a rate of twelve thousand three hundred feet a minute.
Image Source:forums.x-plane.org
Later on, MiG ye 152 was adapted with MiG ye 152a Powered by two R-11F-300 engines each rated at 3900kg and 5740kg. It is considered one of the best fighter jets of all time.
9. XB-70 Valkyrie
The North American XB-70 Valkyrie which was designed in the late 1950s remains one of the fastest & largest bomber fighter jets of all time.
Image Source:Wikimedia
Though this ambitious plan of making this excellent machine had never reached to production. XB-70 Valkyrie was planned by Pentagon in the time when higher altitudes and high speed was considered one of the most striking factors for any air combat especially against the rivals former the Soviet Union. XB-70 Valkyrie was proposed to reach the speed of Mach 3.0+.
8. Bell-X2
Jointly developed by Bell Aircraft Corporation, the United States Air Force and the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), Bell-X2 is the number 8 in the list.
Image Source:Images in NASA: Home – info – pic, Public Domain
Bell-X2 was made for experimental cause and used to explore the flight characteristics.
It was powered by XLR25 rocket engine and can reach the speed up to Mach 3 ((2,094 mph, 3,370 km/h)).
It had a height of 11 ft 10 in (3.6 m) 7 wing area of 260 ft² (24.2 m²).
7. Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25 which was developed by former Soviet Russia was one of the few aircraft which is made purely of stainless steel. It is an interceptor aircraft and one of the last plane designed by Mikhail Gurevich. It can reach the speed up to (Mach 3.2 ) During the World War-2, it was assigned for strategic air defense by USSR.
Image Source:MILITARY-TODAY.COM
Afterward, MiG-25 was extensively used in several warfares like the Persian Gulf War, Iran-Iraq war etc.
MiG-25 was also used widely in Kargil War and Operation Parakram in the name of Garuda.It is powered by 2 × Tumansky R-15B-300 afterburning turbojets and a height of 6.10 m (20 ft 0.25 in).
6. Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
Developed as a black project by the USA in 1960s Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird is a long-range strategic reconnaissance aircraft. Among the total of 32 aircraft, none a single one is destroyed in any operation by enemy resistance.
Image Source:USAF / Judson Brohmer – Armstrong Photo Gallery
It holds the amazing record of being the fastest air-breathing manned aircraft. It was designed to go over Mach 3 with a flight crew of two max. Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird is built primarily with Titanium which was remarkable at that time.
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird main operations included missions over North Vietnam and Laos in 1968.
It is powered by 2 × Pratt & Whitney J58-1 continuous-bleed afterburning turbojets with a length of 107 ft 5 in (32.74 m).
5. North American X-15
The North American X-15 is the fastest manned aircraft with the highest attained speed of Mach 6.72. It was developed jointly by NASA and United States Air Force in 1960s.
Image Source:NASA,Wikimedia
The X-15 was developed as experimental aircraft for gaining valuable data regarding aviation and aircraft technology.X-15 had many advanced features like Reaction Control System.X-15 was also equipped with thick wedge tail to fly steadily at hypersonic speeds.
The North American X-15 was mainly used for Astronautics activities.
4. Boeing X-51 Waverider
Image Source:U.S Airforce,Wikimedia
The Boeing X-51 Waverider is another hypersonic unmanned experimental aircraft known for its extraordinary speed and features. The highest speed attained is Mach 5. The Boeing X-51 was produced jointly by United States Air Force, DARPA, NASA, Boeing, and Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne. The X-51 was mainly developed for high -speed air combats. It has a length of 25 ft in (7.62 m) with the empty weight of about 4,000 lb (1,814 kg).
3. NASA X-43
Being a part of NASA’s Hyper-X program, X-43 was another experimental unmanned aircraft which attained the highest speed of Mach 9.6.
Image Source:Wikimedia
NASA X-43 was mainly built for research in the technologies for air-breathing hypersonic flight. The X-43 used hydrogen fuel in order to minimize the vehicle’s size and weight.
2. X-41 Common Aero Vehicle
Image Source:Hitechweb
The X-41 Common Aero Vehicle is considered one of the topmost secret projects by the USA. Though not many details are revealed, It is assumed that this hypersonic military spaceplane can well attain the speed of over Mach 7.
1. Space Shuttle Atlantis
Image Source:NASA,Wikimedia
The Space Shuttle Atlantis is technically the fastest aircrafts available today. When orbiting the Earth it attains the speed of 17.5K miles/hour which makes it the fastest plane(aircraft) of the world controlled by the man. Owned by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Atlantis 122.17 feet (37.2 m) in length with a height of 56.58 feet (17.2 m).
The post Top 10 Fastest Planes in the World appeared first on Tekkibytes.com.
