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The North American X-15 is a hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft operated by the United States Air Force and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the X-plane series of experimental aircraft.
After winning an industry-wide competition, North American Aviation designed and built the X-15. This is the same company that designed the famous P-51 Mustang of World War II, and America’s first swept-wing fighter, the F-86 Sabre of Korean War fame.
Manufactured by North American Aviation Inc., three rocket-powered X-15s flew a total of 199 times, with North American (and former National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics or NACA) pilot Scott Crossfield making the first, unpowered glide flight on June 8, 1959.
The X-15 and other X-planes are more than a historical legacy for NASA. The program is the core of NASA’s New Aviation Horizons, an array of new experimental aircraft that will carry on the legacy of demonstrating advanced technologies to push back the frontiers of aviation.
Noted for his engineering excellence and technical capability as a pilot, Armstrong became one of only 12 pilots to fly the ultimate experimental aircraft – the North American X-15. The X-15 was a joint research program sponsored by the NACA, the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Navy, and private industry.
The North American X-15 in flight. USAF. Still the fastest airplane ever flown, the North American X-15 earned its title 40 years ago, when on October 3, 1967 Air Force Major William “Pete”...
Fifty years ago in 1959, test pilot Scott Crossfield threw the switch to ignite the twin XLR-11 engines of his North American Aviation X-15 rocket plane and begin the storied test program’s first powered flight. It was a real kick in the pants.
The X-15 hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft, built by North American Aviation (NAA), greatly expanded our knowledge of flight at speeds exceeding Mach 6 and altitudes above 250,000 feet.
The North American X-15 rocket-powered research aircraft bridged the gap between manned flight within the atmosphere and manned flight beyond the atmosphere into space. After completing its initial test flights in 1959, the X-15 became the first winged aircraft to attain velocities of Mach 4, 5, and 6 (four, five, and six times the speed of sound).
North American X-15A-2 on display in the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force Space Gallery. The X-15 was an important tool for developing spaceflight in the 1960s, and pilots flying above 50 miles altitude in the X-15 earned astronaut wings. (U.S. Air Force photo by Ty Greenlees)