The North American X-15 is a hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft which was 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.

x-15a-2 在 1967 年创造出了 6.72 马赫的世界最快速度记录。 由于采用了火箭发动机，最大速度可以达到6.72马赫，是迄今为止人类研制的速度最快的有人驾驶飞机。

North American X-15A-2. Cockpit views of the 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)

2014年11月26日 · In the joint X-15 hypersonic research program that NASA conducted with the Air Force, the Navy, and North American Aviation, Inc., the aircraft flew over a period of nearly 10 years and set the world's unofficial speed and altitude records of 4,520 mph (Mach 6.7) and 354,200 feet in a program to investigate all aspects of piloted hypersonic flight.

2014年2月28日 · The X-15A-2, modified from the number two aircraft and delivered to NASA in February 1964, included among other new features, a 28-in. fuselage extension to carry liquid hydrogen for a supersonic combustion ramjet that was flown (as a dummy) but never tested. It also had external tanks for liquid ammonia and liquid oxygen.

The X-15A-2 reached the highest speeds and altitudes of any manned spaceplane until the space shuttle entered service. The X-15A-2, modified from the number two aircraft and delivered to NASA in February 1964, included among other new features, a 28-in. fuselage extension to carry liquid hydrogen for a supersonic combustion ramjet that was ...

2024年11月18日 · The X-15A-2 reached Mach 4.94 (3,368 miles per hour, 5,420 kilometers per hour) at 85,000 feet (25,908 meters) and reached a peak altitude of 91,000 feet (27,737 meters). Pete Knight touched down on Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards Air Force Base, just 7 minutes, 40.0 seconds after launch.

2014年3月12日 · The X-15A #2 made several flights with the dummy ramjet, leading to the record Mach 6.7 flight on October 3, 1967. Delays in producing the operational ramjet, aerodynamic heating damage to the aircraft during the record flight (despite the ablative coating), and the end of the X-15 program in 1968 resulted in no flights with the actual ramjet.

2016年12月26日 · x-15-2在维修重建期间被升级成x-15a-2，并在1964年6月进行了新构型的首次飞行。 X-15A-2的机身加长了73.66厘米，腹鳍下方可增加一台冲压喷气发动机，机身两侧可挂两个燃料箱。

2023年11月16日 · 1967年10月3日，飞行员彼得·奈特驾驶升级后的x-15a-2战斗机，成功突破载人飞机的最快速度纪录，达到了6.7马赫。 该飞机是美国空军进行升级的一款高空高速试验飞机，旨在挑战极限速度。