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142-553: In 1942, the United Kingdom 's Ministry of Aviation began a top secret project with Miles Aircraft to develop the world's first aircraft capable of breaking the sound barrier. The project resulted in the design of the turbojet -powered Miles M.52 , with a maximum speed of 1,000 miles per hour (870 kn; 1,600 km/h) (over twice the existing airspeed record ) in level flight, and able to climb to an altitude of 36,000 ft (11 km) in 1 min and 30 sec. The fuselage

284-828: A fair trial . The English monarchs, through inheritance of substantial territories in France and claims to the French crown, were also heavily involved in conflicts in France, most notably the Hundred Years' War , while the Kings of Scots were in an alliance with the French during this period. Early modern Britain saw religious conflict resulting from the Reformation and the introduction of Protestant state churches in each country. The English Reformation ushered in political, constitutional, social and cultural change in

426-521: A subpolar oceanic climate . Higher elevations in Scotland experience a continental subarctic climate and the mountains experience a tundra climate . The prevailing wind is from the southwest and bears frequent spells of mild and wet weather from the Atlantic Ocean, although the eastern parts are mostly sheltered from this wind. Since the majority of the rain falls over the western regions,

568-604: A welfare state was established, and a comprehensive, publicly funded healthcare system, the National Health Service , was created. The rise of nationalism in the colonies coincided with Britain's much-diminished economic position, so that a policy of decolonisation was unavoidable. Independence was granted to India and Pakistan in 1947. Over the next three decades, most colonies of the British Empire gained their independence, and many became members of

710-645: A "bullet with wings", its shape closely resembling a Browning .50-caliber (12.7 mm) machine gun bullet, known to be stable in supersonic flight. The shape was followed to the extent of seating its pilot behind a sloped, framed window inside a confined cockpit in the nose, with no ejection seat. For the design of the XS-1 the many unknowns relating to transonic and supersonic flight meant seeking every available source of information from governmental agencies, powerplant manufacturers and research institutions. Foreign information became available in early 1946, shortly after

852-599: A division vice president for research and development and, subsequently, as a staff vice president working with U.S. military and civilian agencies on air traffic control technologies. In 1974–1975, he worked for Hawker Siddeley as a senior vice president supporting HS146 activities in the United States. In 1977, he joined the United States House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology where he served, until his retirement in 1993, as

994-816: A land border with the Republic of Ireland ; otherwise, the United Kingdom is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean , the North Sea , the English Channel , the Celtic Sea , and the Irish Sea . The United Kingdom had an estimated population of over 68.2 million people in 2023. The capital and largest city of both England and the United Kingdom is London , whose wider metropolitan area is

1136-399: A leading role in the movement to abolish slavery worldwide through the blockade of Africa and pressing other nations to end their trade with a series of treaties. In 1800 the parliaments of Great Britain and Ireland each passed an Act of Union, uniting the two kingdoms and creating the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland on 1 January 1801. After the defeat of France at the end of

1278-467: A loafer and used his sock to wipe a hole in the ice to spot his chase pilot. On November 20, 1953, he became the first to fly at twice the speed of sound as he piloted the Skyrocket to a speed of 1,291 mph (2,078 km/h, Mach 2.005). The Skyrocket D-558-II surpassed its intended design speed by 25 percent on that day. With 99 flights in the rocket-powered X-1 and D-558-II, Crossfield had—by

1420-571: A major role in the design and development of the North American X-15 and its systems. Once it was ready to fly, it was his job to demonstrate its airworthiness at speeds ranging up to Mach 3 (2,290 mph). Because the X-15 and its systems were unproven, these tests were considered extremely hazardous. Crossfield flew 14 of the 199 total X-15 flight tests with most of these tests establishing and validating initial key parameters. Crossfield

1562-463: A notebook computer. He also hinted that Burt Rutan and his Scaled Composite company were performing pioneering work for a private aircraft to take-off from an airport, fly into outer space, and return to that airport. In 2004, White Knight carried Space Ship One to its successful launch and winning of the Ansari X-Prize , the first attempt by a plane since the X-15 cancellation. Crossfield

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1704-853: A policy of splendid isolation in Europe, and attempted to contain Russian influence in Afghanistan and Persia , in what came to be known as the Great Game . During this time, Canada , Australia and New Zealand were granted self-governing dominion status. At the turn of the century, Britain's industrial dominance became challenged by the German Empire and the United States . The Edwardian era saw social reform and home rule for Ireland become important domestic issues, while

1846-702: A reproduction Wright Flyer on the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers ' first flight on December 17, 1903. The training was successful, but the December 17, 2003 re-creation failed due to low engine power and the flyer's rain-soaked fabric covering which added considerably to its takeoff weight. The Wright replica ultimately flew successfully at Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina after the Centennial jubilee but without media coverage. When asked to name his favorite airplane, Crossfield replied, "the one I

1988-507: A result of a shortage of workers in the 1950s, the government encouraged immigration from Commonwealth countries . In the following decades, the UK became a more multi-ethnic society. Despite rising living standards in the late 1950s and 1960s, the UK's economic performance was less successful than many of its main competitors such as France, West Germany and Japan. The UK was the first democratic nation to lower its voting age to 18 in 1969. In

2130-811: A series of connected wars (including the English Civil War ) which led to the temporary overthrow of the monarchy, with the execution of King Charles I , and the establishment of the short-lived unitary republic of the Commonwealth of England , Scotland and Ireland. Although the monarchy was restored , the Interregnum along with the Glorious Revolution of 1688 and the subsequent Bill of Rights 1689 in England and Claim of Right Act 1689 in Scotland ensured that, unlike much of

2272-410: A shockwave was preventing a deflected elevator from altering the pressure distribution and pitching force on the tailplane. In September 1946 a DH 108 tail-less jet aircraft was practicing for an attempt on the world speed record when it experienced violent pitching oscillations at Mach 0.875 and broke up. The Bell XS-1 would have a conventional horizontal tail which provides pitch damping not present in

2414-665: A speech to a class of young Air Force officers attending the Air and Space Basic Course . His funeral ceremony was held at the Arlington National Cemetery on August 15, 2006. On September 27, 2007, the National Transportation Safety Board issued a report stating the probable cause of his crash to be as follows: "The pilot's failure to obtain updated en route weather information, which resulted in his continued instrument flight into

2556-648: A stepped canopy for better vision, the X-1A was powered by the same Reaction Motors XLR-11 rocket engine. The aircraft first flew, unpowered, on 14 February 1953 at Edwards AFB, with the first powered flight on 21 February. Both flights were piloted by Bell test pilot Jean "Skip" Ziegler . After NACA started its high-speed testing with the Douglas Skyrocket , culminating in Scott Crossfield achieving Mach 2.005 on 20 November 1953,

2698-524: A successful conclusion as he completed his final flight in the X-15. Although it had been his hope to eventually pilot one of the craft into space, the USAF would not allow it, and gave strict orders which basically amounted to "stay in the sky, stay out of space." Altogether, he completed 16 captive flights (mated to the B-52 launch aircraft), one glide flight and 13 powered flights in the X-15. The retirement of

2840-480: A tail-less aircraft. The XS-1 was first discussed in December 1944. Early specifications for the aircraft were for a piloted supersonic vehicle that could fly at 800 miles per hour (1,300 km/h) at 35,000 feet (11,000 m) for two to five minutes. On 16 March 1945, the U.S. Army Air Forces Flight Test Division and the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) contracted with

2982-631: A technical adviser on all aspects of civil aviation research and development and became one of the nation's leading advocates for a reinvigorated research airplane program. In 1986, this House Committee tasked Crossfield to be a member of the task group assigned to investigate the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster . In a 2000 public lecture, Crossfield described how the X-15 aeronautical calculations and design required computing power that filled four 10'x12' rooms. He went on to say that these very same calculations could be performed today on

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3124-731: A wide margin—more experience with rocketplanes than any other pilot in the world by the time he left Edwards to join North American Aviation in 1955. In September 1954, Crossfield was forced to make a deadstick landing in the North American F-100 Super Sabre he was evaluating at the High-Speed Flight Station (the Neil A. Armstrong Flight Research Center ), a feat which North American's own test pilots doubted could be done, as

3266-598: A widespread area of severe convective activity, and the air traffic controller's failure to provide adverse weather avoidance assistance, as required by Federal Aviation Administration directives, both of which led to the airplane's encounter with a severe thunderstorm and subsequent loss of control." Crossfield received the Lawrence Sperry Award (1954), Octave Chanute Award (1954), Iven C. Kincheloe Award (1960), American Rocket Society (ARS) Astronautics Award (1960), Harmon International Trophy (1961 at

3408-481: Is only the one specific nominal term 'Great Britain' which invariably excludes Northern Ireland". The BBC historically preferred to use "Britain" as shorthand only for Great Britain, though the present style guide does not take a position except that "Great Britain" excludes Northern Ireland. The adjective "British" is commonly used to refer to matters relating to the United Kingdom and is used in law to refer to United Kingdom citizenship and nationality . People of

3550-538: Is ranked 2nd out of 180 countries in the Environmental Performance Index . A law has been passed that UK greenhouse gas emissions will be net zero by 2050. England accounts for 53 per cent of the UK, covering 50,350 square miles (130,395 km ). Most of the country consists of lowland terrain, with upland and mountainous terrain northwest of the Tees–Exe line which roughly divides

3692-599: Is sometimes used as a loose synonym for the United Kingdom as a whole. The word England is occasionally used incorrectly to refer to the United Kingdom as a whole, a mistake principally made by people from outside the UK. The term "Britain" is used as a synonym for Great Britain , but also sometimes for the United Kingdom. Usage is mixed: the UK Government prefers to use the term "UK" rather than "Britain" or "British" on its website (except when referring to embassies), while acknowledging that both terms refer to

3834-579: Is the Isle of Wight . Scotland accounts for 32 per cent of the UK, covering 30,410 square miles (78,772 km ). This includes nearly 800 islands , notably the Hebrides , Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands. Scotland is the most mountainous constituent country of the UK, the Highlands to the north and west are the more rugged region containing the majority of Scotland's mountainous land, including

3976-584: Is the highest peak in Wales. Wales has over 1,680 miles (2,704 kilometres) of coastline including the Pembrokeshire Coast . Several islands lie off the Welsh mainland, the largest of which is Anglesey ( Ynys Môn ). Scott Crossfield Albert Scott Crossfield (October 2, 1921 – April 19, 2006) was an American naval officer and test pilot . In 1953, he became the first pilot to fly at twice

4118-588: The 1884 Reform Act championed by William Gladstone granting suffrage to a majority of males for the first time. The British population increased at a dramatic rate, accompanied by rapid urbanisation , causing significant social and economic stresses. By the late 19th century, the Conservatives under Benjamin Disraeli and Lord Salisbury initiated a period of imperial expansion in Africa , maintained

4260-534: The Atlantic slave trade , mainly between 1662 and 1807 when British or British-colonial slave ships transported nearly 3.3 million slaves from Africa. The slaves were taken to work on plantations , principally in the Caribbean but also North America . However, with pressure from the abolitionism movement , Parliament banned the trade in 1807, banned slavery in the British Empire in 1833, and Britain took

4402-650: The Battle of Culloden in 1746, after which the Scottish Highlanders were forcibly assimilated into Scotland by revoking the feudal independence of clan chiefs . The British colonies in North America that broke away in the American War of Independence became the United States . British imperial ambition turned towards Asia, particularly to India . British merchants played a leading part in

Bell X-1 - Misplaced Pages Continue

4544-583: The Bell X-2 under similar circumstances. ( Bell Model 58A ) Ordered by the Air Force on 2 April 1948, the X-1A (serial number 48-1384) was intended to investigate aerodynamic phenomena at speeds greater than Mach 2 (681 m/s, 2,451 km/h) and altitudes greater than 90,000 ft (27 km), specifically emphasizing dynamic stability and air loads. Longer and heavier than the original X-1, with

4686-663: The Cairngorms , Loch Lomond and The Trossachs and Ben Nevis which at 1,345 metres (4,413 ft) is the highest point in the British Isles. Wales accounts for less than 9 per cent of the UK, covering 8,020 square miles (20,779 km ). Wales is mostly mountainous, though South Wales is less mountainous than North and mid Wales . The highest mountains in Wales are in Snowdonia and include Snowdon ( Welsh : Yr Wyddfa ) which, at 1,085 metres (3,560 ft),

4828-523: The Commonwealth of Nations . The UK was the third country to develop a nuclear weapons arsenal (with its first atomic bomb test, Operation Hurricane , in 1952), but the post-war limits of Britain's international role were illustrated by the Suez Crisis of 1956. The international spread of the English language ensured the continuing international influence of its literature and culture . As

4970-704: The European Convention on Human Rights . The UK remained a great power with global diplomatic and military influence and a leading role in the United Nations and NATO . The UK broadly supported the United States' approach to the " war on terror " in the early 21st century. British troops fought in the War in Afghanistan , but controversy surrounded Britain's military deployment in Iraq , which saw

5112-583: The European Union (EU) in 1992, the UK was one of the 12 founding member states. From the late 1960s, Northern Ireland suffered communal and paramilitary violence (sometimes affecting other parts of the UK) conventionally known as the Troubles . It is usually considered to have ended with the 1998 Belfast "Good Friday" Agreement . Following a period of widespread economic slowdown and industrial strife in

5254-494: The Falkland Islands , leading to the 10-week Falklands War in which Argentine forces were defeated. The inhabitants of the islands are predominantly descendants of British settlers, and strongly favour British sovereignty, expressed in a 2013 referendum . From 1984, the UK economy was helped by the inflow of substantial North Sea oil revenues. Another British overseas territory, Gibraltar , ceded to Great Britain in

5396-545: The French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars (1792–1815), the United Kingdom emerged as the principal naval and imperial power (with London the largest city in the world from about 1830). Unchallenged at sea , British dominance was later described as Pax Britannica ("British Peace"), a period of relative peace among the great powers (1815–1914) during which the British Empire became

5538-662: The Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland united under the Treaty of Union to create the Kingdom of Great Britain . The Acts of Union 1800 incorporated the Kingdom of Ireland to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801. Most of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922 as the Irish Free State , and the Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927 created the present United Kingdom. The UK became

5680-650: The Labour Party emerged from an alliance of trade unions and small socialist groups in 1900, and suffragettes campaigned for women's right to vote. Britain was one of the principal Allies that defeated the Central Powers in the First World War (1914–1918). Alongside their French, Russian and (after 1917) American counterparts, British armed forces were engaged across much of the British Empire and in several regions of Europe, particularly on

5822-573: The Mojave Desert in California , less than a month after the U.S. Air Force had been created as a separate service. Captain Charles "Chuck" Yeager piloted USAF aircraft #46-062, nicknamed Glamorous Glennis for his wife. The airplane was drop launched from the bomb bay of a B-29 and reached Mach 1.06 (700 miles per hour (1,100 km/h; 610 kn)). Following burnout of the engine,

Bell X-1 - Misplaced Pages Continue

5964-568: The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics ' (NACA) High-Speed Flight Station (later named the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center and then the Neil A. Armstrong Flight Research Center ) at Edwards Air Force Base , California, as an aeronautical research pilot. Crossfield demonstrated his flight test skills on his very first student solo. His instructor was not available on the designated early morning, so Crossfield, on his own, took off and went through maneuvers he had practiced with his instructor, including spin entry and spin recovery. During

6106-422: The North American X-15 . The X-1B is now at the National Museum of the United States Air Force , Wright-Patterson Air Force Base at Dayton, Ohio , where it is displayed in the museum's Maj. Gen. Albert Boyd and Maj. Gen. Fred Ascani Research and Development Gallery. ( Bell Model 58C ) The X-1C (serial 48-1387) was intended to test armaments and munitions in the high transonic and supersonic flight regimes. It

6248-464: The Paul Tissandier Diploma , the Victor A. Prather Award, and the Donald D. Engen Award. An elementary school was named in his honor near his last residence, in Herndon, Virginia (a community just northeast of Dulles International Airport ). A ribbon named after him is one of the Aerospace Education Awards in the Civil Air Patrol Senior Members program. The terminal at the Chehalis-Centralia Airport (CLS) in Washington state bears his name. He

6390-405: The Representation of the People Act 1918 . After the war, Britain became a permanent member of the Executive Council of the League of Nations and received a mandate over a number of former German and Ottoman colonies. Under the leadership of David Lloyd George , the British Empire reached its greatest extent, covering a fifth of the world's land surface and a quarter of its population. By

6532-463: The Soviet Union formed in 1941, leading the Allies against the Axis powers . There were eventual hard-fought victories in the Battle of the Atlantic , the North Africa campaign and the Italian campaign . British forces played important roles in the Normandy landings of 1944 and the liberation of Europe . The British Army led the Burma campaign against Japan, and the British Pacific Fleet fought Japan at sea. British scientists contributed to

6674-452: The United Kingdom ( UK ) or Britain , is a country in Northwestern Europe , off the coast of the continental mainland . It comprises England , Scotland , Wales , and Northern Ireland . The UK includes the island of Great Britain , the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland , and most of the smaller islands within the British Isles , making up a total area of 94,354 square miles (244,376 km ). Northern Ireland shares

6816-420: The University of Washington in Seattle , then worked for Boeing . He served with the U.S. Navy as a flight instructor and fighter pilot during World War II . During this time, he flew the F6F Hellcat and F4U Corsair fighters, as well as SNJ trainers, and a variety of other aircraft. He married Alice Virginia Knoph (June 27, 1920 – September 23, 2015) on 21 April 1943 in Corpus Christi, Texas . She

6958-449: The Western Front . The high fatalities of trench warfare caused the loss of much of a generation of men, with lasting social effects in the nation and a great disruption in the social order. Britain had suffered 2.5 million casualties and finished the war with a huge national debt. The consequences of the war persuaded the government to expand the right to vote in national and local elections to all adult men and most adult women with

7100-535: The White House by President John F. Kennedy ), Collier Trophy (1961 at the White House by President Kennedy in 1962), John J. Montgomery Award (1962), NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal (1993), and was named Honorary Fellow by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) (1999). Crossfield is the only American to be honored in the White House for his contributions in advancing aeronautical science—or any other discipline—more than once, let alone two consecutive years. He has been inducted into

7242-408: The coastline paradox . It is connected to continental Europe by the Channel Tunnel , which at 31 miles (50 km) (24 miles (38 km) underwater) is the longest underwater tunnel in the world. The UK contains four terrestrial ecoregions: Celtic broadleaf forests , English Lowlands beech forests , North Atlantic moist mixed forests , and Caledonian conifer forests . The area of woodland in

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7384-436: The largest protest in British history in opposition to the government led by Tony Blair . The Great Recession severely affected the UK economy. The Cameron–Clegg coalition government of 2010 introduced austerity measures intended to tackle the substantial public deficits. Studies have suggested that policy led to significant social disruption and suffering. A referendum on Scottish independence in 2014 resulted in

7526-562: The speed of sound . Crossfield was the first of twelve pilots who flew the North American X-15 , an experimental spaceplane jointly operated by the United States Air Force and NASA . Born October 2, 1921, in Berkeley, California , Scott Crossfield grew up in southern California and rural southwest Washington , a son of Albert Scott Crossfield, Sr. (May 13, 1887 – October 21, 1954) and his first wife Maria Lucia Dwyer (March 8, 1892 – March 23, 1960). Crossfield graduated from Boistfort High School southwest of Chehalis , attended

7668-512: The 16th century and established the Church of England . Moreover, it defined a national identity for England and slowly, but profoundly, changed people's religious beliefs. Wales was fully incorporated into the Kingdom of England , and Ireland was constituted as a kingdom in personal union with the English crown. In what was to become Northern Ireland, the lands of the independent Catholic Gaelic nobility were confiscated and given to Protestant settlers from England and Scotland. In 1603,

7810-401: The 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, is a key military base . A referendum in 2002 on shared sovereignty with Spain was rejected by 98.97% of voters in the territory. Around the end of the 20th century, there were major changes to the governance of the UK with the establishment of devolved administrations for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The statutory incorporation followed acceptance of

7952-406: The 1970s, the Conservative government of the 1980s led by Margaret Thatcher initiated a radical policy of monetarism , deregulation, particularly of the financial sector (for example, the Big Bang in 1986) and labour markets, the sale of state-owned companies (privatisation), and the withdrawal of subsidies to others. In 1982, Argentina invaded the British territories of South Georgia and

8094-476: The 5th century) united with the Picts to create the Kingdom of Scotland in the 9th century. In 1066, the Normans invaded England from northern France. After conquering England , they seized large parts of Wales , conquered much of Ireland and were invited to settle in Scotland, bringing to each country feudalism on the Northern French model and Norman-French culture. The Anglo-Norman ruling class greatly influenced, but eventually assimilated with,

8236-452: The Air Force started a series of tests with the X-1A, which the test pilot of the series, Chuck Yeager , named "Operation NACA Weep". These culminated on 12 December 1953, when Yeager achieved an altitude of 74,700 feet (22,800 m) and a new airspeed record of Mach 2.44 (equal to 1620 mph, 724.5 m/s, 2608 km/h at that altitude). Unlike Crossfield in the Skyrocket, Yeager achieved that in level flight. Soon afterwards,

8378-405: The B-29 dropping the aircraft at 29,000 feet (8,800 m) and the XS-1 landing 12 minutes later at about 110 miles per hour (180 km/h). In March 1946 the #1 rocket plane was returned to Bell Aircraft in Buffalo, New York for modifications to prepare for the powered flight tests. Four more glide tests occurred at Muroc Army Air Field near Palmdale, California , which had been flooded during

8520-418: The Bell Aircraft Company to build three XS-1 (for "Experimental, Supersonic", later X-1) aircraft to obtain flight data on conditions in the transonic speed range. Bell built a rocket plane after considering the turbojet alternative. Turbojets could not achieve the required performance at high altitude. An aircraft with both turbojet and rocket engines would be too large and complex. The X-1 was, in principle,

8662-464: The Brittonic area mainly to what was to become Wales , Cornwall and, until the latter stages of the Anglo-Saxon settlement, the Hen Ogledd (northern England and parts of southern Scotland). Most of the region settled by the Anglo-Saxons became unified as the Kingdom of England in the 10th century. Meanwhile, Gaelic speakers in north-west Britain (with connections to the north-east of Ireland and traditionally supposed to have migrated from there in

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8804-534: The F-100 had a high landing speed. Crossfield made a perfect approach and touchdown, but was unable to bring the unpowered aircraft to a halt in a safe distance, and was forced to use the wall of the NACA hangar as a makeshift brake after narrowly missing several parked experimental aircraft ("with great precision," as he later wryly joked). Crossfield was uninjured, and the F-100 was later repaired and returned to service. Crossfield left NACA in 1955. As chief engineering test pilot for North American, Crossfield played

8946-413: The Florida tests, before the first powered test on 9 December 1946. Two chambers were ignited, but the aircraft accelerated so quickly that one chamber was turned off until reignition at 35,000 feet (11,000 m), reaching Mach 0.795. After the chambers were turned off the aircraft descended to 15,000 feet (4,600 m), where all four chambers were briefly tested. After Woolams died while practicing for

9088-410: The International Aerospace Hall of Fame (1965), National Aviation Hall of Fame (1983), the International Space Hall of Fame (1988), the Virginia Aviation Hall of Fame (1998), Aerospace Walk of Honor (1990), The Glen A. Gilbert Memorial Award (1990), the FAI Gold Air Medal (1994) and the National Air and Space Museum Trophy (2000). Posthumously, he has been awarded the Hoyt S. Vandenberg Award,

9230-452: The Manhattan Project whose task was to build an atomic weapon. Once built, it was decided, with British consent, to use the weapon against Japan. The UK was one of the Big Three powers (along with the US and the Soviet Union) who met to plan the post-war world ; it drafted the Declaration by United Nations with the United States and became one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council . It worked closely with

9372-425: The Name of Great Britain". The term "United Kingdom" has occasionally been used as a description for the former Kingdom of Great Britain , although its official name from 1707 to 1800 was simply "Great Britain". The Acts of Union 1800 formed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland . Following the partition of Ireland and the independence of the Irish Free State in 1922, which left Northern Ireland as

9514-410: The National Air Races in August 1946, Chalmers "Slick" Goodlin was assigned as the primary Bell Aircraft test pilot for the X-1. Goodlin made the first powered flight on 9 December 1946. Tex Johnston , Bell's chief test pilot and program supervisor, made a test flight on 22 May 1947, after complaints about the slow progress of flight tests. According to Johnston, "The contract with the Air Corps defined

9656-743: The National Congress on Aerospace Education later called the National Conference on Aerospace Education (NCASE). After his death in 2006 and the shift of NCASE from an annual to biannual conference, Crossfields's daughter, Sally Crossfield Farley, moved the award to the National Aviation Hall of Fame where it is presented during the Enshrinement Weekend each July in Dayton, Ohio . In the 1991 Discovery Channel series Frontiers of Flight, Crossfield judged he "...probably had more centrifuge time, pressure suit time and pressure chamber time and all of that than any man alive." From 2001 to 2003, Crossfield trained pilots Terry Queijo, Kevin Kochersberger, Chris Johnson and Ken Hyde for The Wright Experience, preparing to fly

9798-411: The Normans conquered England . With the end of the Wars of the Roses the English state stabilised and began to grow in power, resulting by the 16th century in the annexation of Wales , the domination of Scotland , and the establishment of the British Empire . Over the course of the 17th century, the role of the British monarchy was reduced, particularly as a result of the English Civil War . In 1707,

9940-495: The Scottish electorate voting by 55.3 to 44.7% to remain part of the United Kingdom. In 2016, 51.9 per cent of voters in the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union . The UK left the EU in 2020. On 1 May 2021, the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement came into force. The COVID-19 pandemic had a severe impact on the UK's economy , caused major disruptions to education and had far-reaching impacts on society and politics in 2020 and 2021. The United Kingdom

10082-489: The Second World War damaged Britain's economic power and a global wave of decolonisation led to the independence of most British colonies. The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy . The UK has three distinct jurisdictions: England and Wales , Scotland , and Northern Ireland . Since 1999, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own governments and parliaments which control various devolved matters. A developed country ,

10224-564: The U.S. Air Force starting from October 1954, prior to being transferred to the NACA during January 1955. NACA continued to fly the aircraft until January 1958, when cracks in the fuel tanks forced its grounding. The X-1B completed a total of 27 flights. A notable achievement was the installation of a system of small reaction rockets used for directional control, making the X-1B the first aircraft to fly with this sophisticated control system, later used in

10366-501: The UK has the world's sixth-largest economy by nominal gross domestic product (GDP). It is a nuclear state , and is ranked fifth globally in military expenditure . The UK has been a permanent member of the UN Security Council since its first session in 1946. It is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations , Council of Europe , G7 , OECD , NATO , Five Eyes , AUKUS and CPTPP . British influence can be observed in

10508-484: The UK in 2023 is estimated to be 3.25 million hectares, which represents 13% of the total land area in the UK. Most of the United Kingdom has a temperate climate, with generally cool temperatures and plentiful rainfall all year round. The temperature varies with the seasons seldom dropping below 0  °C (32  °F ) or rising above 30 °C (86 °F). Some parts, away from the coast, of upland England, Wales, Northern Ireland and most of Scotland, experience

10650-961: The UK into lowland and upland areas. Lowland areas include Cornwall , the New Forest , the South Downs and the Norfolk Broads . Upland areas include the Lake District , the Pennines , the Yorkshire Dales , Exmoor , and Dartmoor . The main rivers and estuaries are the Thames , Severn , and the Humber . England's highest mountain is Scafell Pike , at 978 metres (3,209 ft) in the Lake District; its largest island

10792-402: The United Kingdom and that elsewhere "British government" is used at least as frequently as "United Kingdom government". The UK Permanent Committee on Geographical Names recognises "United Kingdom", "UK" and "U.K." as shortened and abbreviated geopolitical terms for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in its toponymic guidelines; it does not list "Britain" but notes that "it

10934-411: The United Kingdom is 1339.7 hours, which is just under 30% of the maximum possible. The hours of sunshine vary from 1200 to about 1580 hours per year, and since 1996 the UK has been and still is receiving above the 1981 to 2010 average hours of sunshine. Climate change has a serious impact on the country. A third of food price rise in 2023 is attributed to climate change. As of 2022, the United Kingdom

11076-436: The United Kingdom use several different terms to describe their national identity and may identify themselves as being British , English , Scottish , Welsh , Northern Irish , or Irish ; or as having a combination of different national identities. Settlement by Cro-Magnons of what was to become the United Kingdom occurred in waves beginning by about 30,000 years ago. The island has been continuously inhabited only since

11218-685: The United Kingdom. The 1928 Equal Franchise Act gave women electoral equality with men in national elections. Strikes in the mid-1920s culminated in the General Strike of 1926 . Britain had still not recovered from the effects of the First World War when the Great Depression (1929–1932) led to considerable unemployment and hardship in the old industrial areas, as well as political and social unrest with rising membership in communist and socialist parties. A coalition government

11360-627: The United States Postal Service issued a fiftieth anniversary commemorative stamp recognizing the Bell X1-6062 aircraft as the first aeronautical vehicle to fly at supersonic speed of approximately Mach 1.06 (1,299 km/h; 806.9 mph). The Bell X-1 is also the subject of a toy version in the Arthur episode "Arthur's Big Hit". In that episode, D.W. tries to let it fly out the window, but it ends up falling to

11502-640: The United States to establish the IMF , World Bank and NATO . The war left the UK severely weakened and financially dependent on the Marshall Plan , but it was spared the total war that devastated eastern Europe. In the immediate post-war years, the Labour government under Clement Attlee initiated a radical programme of reforms, which significantly impacted British society in the following decades . Major industries and public utilities were nationalised ,

11644-451: The X-15 (due to funding cutbacks) after its record-setting Mach 6.70 (4,520 mph) flight prompted pilot Pete Knight to remark that he would have pushed it to even faster speeds if he knew it was the last flight. In his remarks to a number of aviation groups, Crossfield cited the X-15 as one of few aircraft that caused grown men to cry upon its retirement. He remained at North American as systems director of test and quality assurance in

11786-471: The X-1A series. All subsequent supersonic aircraft would either have an all-moving tailplane or be "tailless" delta winged types. Swept wings were not used because too little was known about them. As the design might lead to a fighter, the XS-1 was intended to take off from the ground, but the end of the war made the B-29 Superfortress available to carry it into the air. The rocket engine

11928-493: The X-1E was permanently grounded after its 26th flight, during November 1958, due to the discovery of structural cracks in the fuel tank wall. Data from Bell Aircraft since 1935, The X-Planes: X-1 to X-45 General characteristics Performance Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Related lists United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland , commonly known as

12070-576: The acquisition and settlement of overseas colonies , particularly in North America and the Caribbean. Though previous attempts at uniting the two kingdoms within Great Britain in 1606, 1667, and 1689 had proved unsuccessful, the attempt initiated in 1705 led to the Treaty of Union of 1706 being agreed and ratified by both parliaments. On 1 May 1707, the Kingdom of Great Britain was formed,

12212-427: The aircraft spun out of control, due to the then not yet understood phenomenon of inertia coupling . The X-1A dropped from maximum altitude to 25,000 feet (7,600 m), exposing the pilot to accelerations of as much as 8g, during which Yeager broke the canopy with his helmet before regaining control. On 28 May 1954, Maj. Arthur W. Murray piloted the X-1A to a new record of 90,440 feet (27,570 m). The aircraft

12354-450: The airframe. On September 17, 1959, he completed the first powered flight. Because of delays in the development of the X-15's mammoth 57,000 pounds force (254 kN) thrust XLR-99 engine, the early flights were completed with a pair of interim XLR-11 rocket engines. Shortly after launch on his third flight, one of these engines exploded. Unable to jettison his propellants, Crossfield was forced to make an emergency landing during which

12496-404: The airplane's first flight, an unpowered glide from 37,550 feet. The flight was troubled as the flight controls had not been set up properly. As Crossfield attempted to land the unfueled X-15, it went into what Crossfield described as "a classic PIO" or pilot induced oscillation. He managed to set down the X-15 on the desert runway at the bottom of one of the severe oscillations saving himself and

12638-412: The area when air traffic controllers lost radio and radar contact with Crossfield's plane. The Gordon County Sheriff's department reported that debris from Crossfield's aircraft was found in three different locations within a quarter mile, suggesting that the plane broke up while it was still in the air. Crossfield was returning from Maxwell Air Force Base , Montgomery, Alabama , where he had given

12780-625: The cockpit to save him and despite being subjected to a later calculated acceleration force of near 50 Gs (although Crossfield stated in the Discovery Channel's series Frontiers of Flight that he began to have debilitating issues with his night vision after the accident) and the airplane was completely rebuilt. On November 15 of the same year, he completed the X-15's first powered flight with the XLR-99 engine. Two flights later, on December 6, he brought North American's demonstration program to

12922-597: The company's Space and Information Systems Division where he oversaw quality, reliability engineering and systems test activities for such programs as the Apollo command and service modules and the Saturn S-II booster. In 1966, he became the division's technical director for research engineering and test. In 1961, Crossfield became division director of test and quality assurance for NAA's Paraglider project. In 1967, Crossfield joined Eastern Air Lines where he served as

13064-736: The decades-long process of European integration , the UK was a founding member of the Western European Union , established with the London and Paris Conferences in 1954. In 1960 the UK was one of the seven founding members of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), but in 1973 it left to join the European Communities (EC). In a 1975 referendum 67% voted to stay in it. When the EC became

13206-407: The desert floor, the X-1A became the first of many early X-planes that would be lost to explosions. ( Bell Model 58B ) The X-1B (serial 48-1385) was equipped with aerodynamic heating instrumentation for thermal research (more than 300 thermal probes were installed on its surface). It was similar to the X-1A except for having a slightly different wing. The X-1B was used for high-speed research by

13348-483: The eastern parts are the driest. Atlantic currents, warmed by the Gulf Stream , bring mild winters, especially in the west where winters are wet and even more so over high ground. Summers are warmest in the southeast of England and coolest in the north. Heavy snowfall can occur in winter and early spring on high ground, and occasionally settles to great depth away from the hills. The average total annual sunshine in

13490-452: The excessive load on the aircraft broke its back just behind the cockpit. He was uninjured and the airplane was repaired. On June 8, 1960, he had another close call during ground tests with the XLR-99 engine. He was seated in the cockpit of the No. 3 X-15 when a malfunctioning valve caused a catastrophic explosion. Once again he was uninjured as Dr. Toby Freedman , NAA Medical Director, pried open

13632-632: The first glide test of the XS-1 in Jan 1946, when the British Ministry of Supply cancelled the Miles M.52 and ordered all research reports and other information be sent to Bell Aircraft. Bell Aircraft aerodynamicists working with NACA laboratories predicted significant longitudinal trim changes during transonic flight. John Stack and Robert Gilruth at NACA recommended that Bell mount the elevator on an adjustable horizontal stabilizer. Bell incorporated

13774-404: The first industrialised country and was the world's foremost power for the majority of the 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly during the " Pax Britannica " between 1815 and 1914. At its height in the 1920s, the British Empire encompassed almost a quarter of the world's landmass and population, and was the largest empire in history . However, its involvement in the First World War and

13916-440: The first spin, Crossfield experienced vibrations, banging, and noise in the aircraft that he had never encountered with his instructor. He recovered, climbed to a higher altitude, and repeated his spin entry and spin recovery, getting the same vibration, banging and noise. On his third spin entry, at yet an even higher altitude, he looked over his shoulder as he was spinning and observed the instructor's door disengaged and flapping in

14058-597: The first two X-1 engines were pressurized with nitrogen , reducing flight time by about 1 + 1 ⁄ 2 minutes and increasing landing weight by 2,000 pounds (910 kg), but the rest used gas-driven turbopumps , increasing the chamber pressure and thrust while making the engine lighter. Bell Aircraft chief test pilot Jack Woolams became the first person to fly the XS-1. He made a glide-flight over Pinecastle Army Airfield , in Florida , on 19 January 1946. Woolams completed nine more glide-flights over Pinecastle, with

14200-594: The first year, Britain and its Empire continued the war against Germany. Churchill engaged industry, scientists and engineers to support the government and the military in the prosecution of the war effort. In 1940, the Royal Air Force defeated the German Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain . Urban areas suffered heavy bombing during the Blitz . The Grand Alliance of Britain, the United States and

14342-587: The formal control it exerted over its own colonies, British dominance of much of world trade meant that it effectively controlled the economies of regions such as East Asia and Latin America . Throughout the Victorian era , political attitudes favoured free trade and laissez-faire policies. Beginning with the Great Reform Act in 1832, Parliament gradually widened the voting franchise , with

14484-817: The global hegemon and adopted the role of global policeman. From 1853 to 1856, Britain took part in the Crimean War , allied with the Ottoman Empire against Tsarist Russia , participating in the naval battles of the Baltic Sea known as the Åland War in the Gulf of Bothnia and the Gulf of Finland , among others. Following the Indian Rebellion in 1857 , the British government led by Lord Palmerston assumed direct rule over India . Alongside

14626-593: The ground and breaking. This resulted in a classic moment in which Arthur clenches his fist and punches D.W.; the classic moment of Arthur clenching his fist has since become a meme. Later variants of the X-1 were built to test different aspects of supersonic flight; one of these, the X-1A, with Yeager at the controls, inadvertently demonstrated a very dangerous characteristic of fast (Mach 2 plus) supersonic flight: inertia coupling . Only Yeager's skills as an aviator prevented disaster; later Mel Apt would lose his life testing

14768-403: The kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland were united in a personal union when James VI, King of Scots , inherited the crowns of England and Ireland and moved his court from Edinburgh to London; each country nevertheless remained a separate political entity and retained its separate political, legal, and religious institutions. In the mid-17th century, all three kingdoms were involved in

14910-581: The largest in Western Europe , with a population of 14.9 million. The cities of Edinburgh , Cardiff , and Belfast are the national capitals of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, respectively. The lands of the UK have been inhabited continuously since the Neolithic . In AD 43 the Roman conquest of Britain began; the Roman departure was followed by Anglo-Saxon settlement . In 1066,

15052-408: The last retreat of the ice around 11,500 years ago. By the end of the region's prehistoric period , the population is thought to have belonged largely to a culture termed Insular Celtic , comprising Brittonic Britain and Gaelic Ireland . The Roman conquest , beginning in 43 AD, and the 400-year rule of southern Britain , was followed by an invasion by Germanic Anglo-Saxon settlers, reducing

15194-409: The legal and political systems of many of its former colonies , and British culture remains globally influential, particularly in language , literature , music and sport . English is the world's most widely spoken language and the third-most spoken native language . The Acts of Union 1707 declared that the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland were "United into One Kingdom by

15336-530: The local cultures. Subsequent medieval English kings completed the conquest of Wales and tried unsuccessfully to annex Scotland . Asserting its independence in the 1320 Declaration of Arbroath , Scotland maintained its independence thereafter, albeit in near-constant conflict with England . In 1215 the Magna Carta was the first document to state that no government was above the law, that citizens have rights protecting them and that they were entitled to

15478-680: The major part of the British Isles archipelago and includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern one-sixth of the island of Ireland and some smaller surrounding islands. It lies between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea with the southeast coast coming within 22 miles (35 km) of the coast of northern France, from which it is separated by the English Channel . The Royal Greenwich Observatory in London

15620-674: The mid-1920s, most of the British population could listen to BBC radio programmes. Experimental television broadcasts began in 1929 and the first scheduled BBC Television Service commenced in 1936. The rise of Irish nationalism , and disputes within Ireland over the terms of Irish Home Rule , led eventually to the partition of the island in 1921. A period of conflict in what is now Northern Ireland occurred from June 1920 until June 1922. The Irish Free State became independent, initially with Dominion status in 1922, and unambiguously independent in 1931 . Northern Ireland remained part of

15762-463: The only part of the island of Ireland within the United Kingdom, the name was changed in 1927 to the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland". Although the United Kingdom is a sovereign country, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are also widely referred to as countries . The UK Prime Minister's website has used the phrase "countries within a country" to describe the United Kingdom. Some statistical summaries, such as those for

15904-660: The plane glided to a landing on the dry lake bed. This was XS-1 flight number 50. The three main participants in the X-1 program won the National Aeronautics Association Collier Trophy in 1948 for their efforts. Honored at the White House by President Truman were Larry Bell for Bell Aircraft, Captain Yeager for piloting the flights, and John Stack for the contributions of the NACA. The story of Yeager's 14 October flight

16046-539: The presence of pure oxygen and mechanical shock. This mistake cost two lives, caused injuries and lost several aircraft. The changes included: The X-1E first flew on 15 December 1955, a glide-flight controlled by USAF test pilot Joe Walker . Walker left the X-1E program during 1958, after 21 flights, attaining a maximum speed of Mach 2.21 (752 m/s, 2,704 km/h). NACA research pilot John B. McKay took his place during September 1958, completing five flights in pursuit of Mach 3 (1,021 m/s, 3,675 km/h) before

16188-504: The rest of Europe, royal absolutism would not prevail, and a professed Catholic could never accede to the throne. The British constitution would develop on the basis of constitutional monarchy and the parliamentary system . With the founding of the Royal Society in 1660, science was greatly encouraged. During this period, particularly in England, the development of naval power and the interest in voyages of discovery led to

16330-587: The result of the Acts of Union 1707 between the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland . In the 18th century, cabinet government developed under Robert Walpole , in practice the first prime minister (1721–1742). A series of Jacobite uprisings sought to remove the Protestant House of Hanover from the throne and restore the Catholic House of Stuart . The Jacobites were finally defeated at

16472-443: The spin. He reached back, pulled the door closed, and discovered all the vibrations, banging and noise stopped. Satisfied, he recovered from the spin, landed, and fueled the airplane. He also realized his instructor had been holding the door during their practice spin entries and recoveries, and never mentioned this door quirk. In later years, Crossfield often cited his curiosity about this solo spin anomaly and his desire to analyze what

16614-422: The stabilizer with rapid adjustment in pitch to accommodate large changes of trim. A contractor test flight by Tex Johnston showed an unacceptable lost motion between the pilot's input to the horizontal stabilizer and the stabilizer actuator which was corrected before the XS-1 was handed over for the high speed research program. The whole tailplane could be moved or just the elevator at fixed stabilizer settings. It

16756-491: The summer of 1946, the M52 was cancelled. In place of the manned full-scale M.52 it was decided to test 3/10 scale models of the aircraft, rocket propelled, dropped from an aircraft, and controlled by an autopilot. On the 10th of October 1948 a model achieved Mach 1.38 in level flight. The Bell XS-1 would have a conventional horizontal tail-plane but with trimming available on the stabilizer. It would be required for pitch control when

16898-418: The test team by surprise until they realized that extra control was available by moving the horizontal stabilizer. The tailplane trim setting had to be accurately set on the ground to ensure a controlled drop at the beginning of a flight. Scott Crossfield relates an inadvertent one-degree error flipping the X-1 on its back after being dropped from the mother plane. The tailplane configuration was carried over to

17040-475: The tests by Bell as onboard systems verification, handling characteristics evaluation, stability and control, and performance testing to Mach 0.99." After Johnston's initial flight at 0.72 Mach, he thought the airplane was ready for supersonic flights, after the longitudinal trim system was fixed, and three more test flights. The Army Air Force was unhappy with the cautious pace of flight envelope expansion and Bell Aircraft's flight test contract for airplane #46-062

17182-436: The twelve NUTS 1 regions , refer to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as "regions". Northern Ireland is also referred to as a "province". With regard to Northern Ireland, the descriptive name used "can be controversial, with the choice often revealing one's political preferences". The term "Great Britain" conventionally refers to the island of Great Britain, or politically to England, Scotland and Wales in combination. It

17324-417: The war believed that a swept-wing design was necessary to break the sound barrier. On 10 June 1948, Air Force Secretary Stuart Symington announced that the sound barrier had been repeatedly broken by two experimental airplanes. On 5 January 1949, Yeager used Aircraft #46-062 to perform the only conventional (runway) launch of the X-1 program, attaining 23,000 ft (7,000 m) in 90 seconds. In 1997,

17466-526: Was a four-chamber design built by Reaction Motors Inc ., one of the first companies to build liquid-propellant rocket engines in the U.S. After considering hydrogen peroxide monopropellant , aniline / nitric acid bipropellant , and nitromethane monopropellant as fuels, the rocket burned ethyl alcohol diluted with water with a liquid oxygen oxidizer . Its four chambers could be individually turned on and off, so thrust could be changed in 1,500 lbf (6,700 N) increments. The fuel and oxygen tanks for

17608-770: Was also most proud of his A. Scott Crossfield Aerospace Education Teacher of the Year Award which is awarded annually at what is known as the "Oscar Night" in aviation, the Annual Enshrinement Ceremony Weekend at the National Aviation Hall of Fame held each year at the end of July in Dayton, Ohio. Crossfield received an honorary doctor of science degree from the Florida Institute of Technology in 1982. While he

17750-488: Was canceled while still in the mockup stage, as the development of transonic and supersonic-capable aircraft like the North American F-86 Sabre and the North American F-100 Super Sabre eliminated the need for a dedicated experimental test vehicle. ( Bell Model 58D ) The X-1D (serial 48-1386) was the first of the second generation of supersonic rocket planes. Flown from an EB-50A (s/n #46-006), it

17892-561: Was celebrated as a daring test pilot, he claimed that his actual profession was an engineer. "I am an aeronautical engineer, an aerodynamicist and a designer. My flying was only primarily because I felt that it was essential to designing and building better airplanes for pilots to fly." In the 23rd century of the Star Trek universe, Crossfield is honored with the Crossfield -class of starships, one of which, USS Discovery (NCC-1031),

18034-623: Was chosen as the defining point of the Prime Meridian at the International Meridian Conference in 1884. The United Kingdom lies between latitudes 49° and 61° N , and longitudes 9° W and 2° E . Northern Ireland shares a 224-mile (360 km) land boundary with the Republic of Ireland. The coastline of Great Britain is 11,073 miles (17,820 km) long, though measurements can vary greatly due to

18176-505: Was completed after a nine-minute descent, but upon landing, the nose landing gear failed and the aircraft slid ungracefully to a stop. Repairs took several weeks to complete and a second flight was scheduled for mid-August. On 22 August 1951, the X-1D was lost in a fuel explosion during preparations for the first powered flight. The aircraft was destroyed upon impact after it was jettisoned from its EB-50A mothership. ( Bell Model 44 ) The X-1E

18318-581: Was flying at the time," because he thoroughly enjoyed them all and their unique personalities. On April 19, 2006, a Cessna 210A piloted by Crossfield was reported missing while flying from Prattville, Alabama toward Manassas, Virginia , near his home in Herndon . On April 20, authorities confirmed his body was found in the wreckage of his plane in a remote area of Ludville in Pickens County Georgia . There were severe thunderstorms in

18460-470: Was formed in 1931. Nonetheless, "Britain was a very wealthy country, formidable in arms, ruthless in pursuit of its interests and sitting at the heart of a global production system." After Nazi Germany invaded Poland in 1939, Britain entered the Second World War . Winston Churchill became prime minister and head of a coalition government in 1940. Despite the defeat of its European allies in

18602-554: Was going on and why it happened, as the start of his test pilot career. Over the next five years, he flew nearly all of the experimental aircraft under test at Edwards, including the X-1 , XF-92 , X-4 , X-5 , Douglas D-558-I Skystreak , and the Douglas D-558-II Skyrocket . During one of his X-1 flights, the cockpit windows completely frosted and Crossfield was literally flying blind. Ever resourceful, he removed

18744-502: Was leaked to a reporter from the magazine Aviation Week , and the Los Angeles Times featured the story as headline news in their 22 December issue. The magazine story was released on 20 December. The Air Force threatened legal action against the journalists who revealed the story, but none ever occurred. The news of a straight-wing supersonic aircraft surprised many American experts, who like their German counterparts during

18886-444: Was not only involved with the design of X-15 from the beginning, but introduced many innovations, including putting engine controls of the rocket plane into the cockpit. Previously, all engine adjustments resulted from technicians making adjustments on the ground based upon results of flight profiles. It was during this time that Crossfield was part of the U.S. Air Force 's Man In Space Soonest project. On June 8, 1959, he completed

19028-653: Was of Norwegian descent and had attended Garfield High School in Seattle. From 1946 to 1950, he worked in the University of Washington's Kirsten Wind Tunnel while earning his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in aeronautical engineering in 1949 and 1950, respectively. Their son Paul Stanley Crossfield was born in 1952 while the Crossfields resided in California. In 1950, Crossfield joined

19170-628: Was placed as high as possible above the wing wake with a thinner section than for the wing to separate the high drag rise from the wing from compressibility effects on the tail. Initially, as increases in speed were made in small steps towards possibly unknown control difficulties the horizontal stabilizer was left at its pre-launch angle set on the ground as there was concern that adjusting it at high speed would cause severe control problems. Nevertheless, in October 1947, when test pilot Yeager ran out of elevator authority (no pitch control) at Mach 0.94 it took

19312-474: Was played by Scott Wilson in the 1983 film The Right Stuff . Crossfield co-authored Always Another Dawn , a story of a rocket test pilot, with Clay Blair Jr, and authored "Onward and Upward" Research Airplanes, Act II . In 1986 he created and funded the A. Scott Crossfield Aerospace Education Teacher of the Year Award presented annually under the stewardship of the Civil Air Patrol during

19454-407: Was shaped like a bullet, it had thin wings and a slab tailplane for controlled flight at the speed of sound and beyond. Miles' chief aerodynamicist, Dennis Bancroft, was interviewed many years later in 1997 on his reason for needing an all-moving tailplane in his 1944 design. In 1944 Miles was told to go ahead with the construction of three prototypes. In February 1946, with a first flight expected in

19596-597: Was terminated. The test program was acquired by the Army Air Force Flight Test Division on 24 June after months of negotiation. Goodlin had demanded a US$ 150,000 bonus (equivalent to $ 2.05 million in 2023) for exceeding the speed of sound. Flight tests of the X-1-2 (serial 46-063) would be conducted by NACA to provide design data for later production high-performance aircraft. The first manned supersonic flight occurred on 14 October 1947, over

19738-432: Was the first country in the world to use an approved COVID-19 vaccine , developing its own vaccine through a collaboration between Oxford University and AstraZeneca , which allowed the UK's vaccine rollout to be among the fastest in the world. The total area of the United Kingdom is approximately 94,354 square miles (244,376 km ), with a land area of 93,723 square miles (242,741 km ). The country occupies

19880-432: Was the result of a reconstruction of the X-1-2 (serial 46-063), in order to pursue the goals originally set for the X-1D and X-1-3 (serial 46-064), both lost by explosions during 1951. The cause of the mysterious explosions was finally traced to the use of Ulmer leather gaskets impregnated with tricresyl phosphate (TCP), a leather treatment, which was used in the liquid oxygen plumbing. TCP becomes unstable and explosive in

20022-405: Was to be used for heat transfer research. The X-1D was equipped with a new low-pressure fuel system and a slightly increased fuel capacity. There were also some minor changes of the avionics suite. On 24 July 1951, with Bell test pilot Jean "Skip" Ziegler at the controls, the X-1D was launched over Rogers Dry Lake , on what was to become the only successful flight of its career. The unpowered glide

20164-506: Was transferred to NACA during September 1954, and subsequently modified. The X-1A was lost on 8 August 1955, when, while being prepared for launch from the RB-50 mothership, an explosion ruptured the plane's liquid oxygen tank. With the help of crewmembers on the RB-50, test pilot Joseph A. Walker successfully extricated himself from the plane, which was then jettisoned. Exploding on impact with

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