The Bell X-1 (Bell Model 44) is a rocket engine–powered aircraft, designated originally as the XS-1, and was a joint National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics – U.S. Army Air Forces – U.S. Air Force supersonic research project built by Bell Aircraft.

Oct 13, 2022 · The Bell X-1 flew 78 times—as fast as Mach 1.45 and as high as 21,900 meters (71,900 feet). The X-1 program gathered crucial flight data about transonic and supersonic flight for the Air Force and the National Advisory Committee for …

Feb 28, 2014 · The Bell Aircraft Corporation X-1-1 (46-062) in flight. The shock-wave pattern in the exhaust plume is visible. The X-1 series aircraft were air-launched from a modified Boeing B-29 or a B-50 Superfortress bombers.

Bell X-1, U.S. rocket-powered supersonic research airplane built by Bell Aircraft Corporation, the first aircraft to exceed the speed of sound in level flight.

On October 14, 1947, the Bell X-1 became the first airplane to fly faster than the speed of sound. Piloted by U.S. Air Force Capt. Charles E. "Chuck" Yeager, the X-1 reached a speed of 1,127 kilometers (700 miles) per hour, Mach 1.06, at an altitude of 13,000 meters (43,000 feet).

Oct 14, 2021 · America’s first rocket-powered research plane, the X-1 was designed to push the unknown limits of high-speed and high-altitude flight with a superbly designed airframe and liquid-fueled rocket motors.

Jan 12, 2024 · Bell Aircraft Corporation's X-1 Glamorous Glennis was the first aircraft capable of breaking the sound barrier, and served as an important aeronautic step for American engineers hoping to...

A joint project of NACA and the U.S. Army Air Forces, built by Bell Aircraft of Buffalo, New York, the X-1 reached a speed of 700 miles per hour that bright day, Mach 1.06 at an altitude of...

Dec 2, 2019 · The Bell X-1 was a rocket-powered aircraft developed for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics and the US Army Air Forces that first flew in 1946. Intended for research into transonic flight, the X-1 became the first aircraft to break the sound barrier.

Jun 21, 2023 · It was the first manned aeroplane to exceed the speed of sound in level flight, a feat it achieved on October 14, 1947. This marked a critical point in aeronautical research and forever changed the course of aviation, paving the way for the development of supersonic and eventually, hypersonic flight.