Aircraft records
This article gives yearly aviation records under 5 headings: airspeed, range, ceiling, gross take-off weight, and engine power.
| Year | Airspeed | Range | Ceiling | T/O Weight | Engine power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1905 | 60.91 km/h (37.85 mph) USA Wilbur Wright Flyer III October 5, 1905 |
38.95 km (24.2 miles) USA Wilbur Wright Flyer III October 5, 1905 |
15 m (50 ft) USA Wilbur Wright Flyer III September 28, 1905 |
388 kg (855 lb) USA Wright Brothers Flyer III |
37 kW (50 hp) France Léon Levavasseur Antoinette |
| 1907 | 25 m (82 ft) France Louis Blériot Blériot VI September 17, 1907 |
522 kg (1,151 lb) France Voisin Brothers Voisin-Farman No 1 |
40 kW (54 hp) France Renault VB Renault | ||
| 1908 | 64.79 km/h (40.26 mph) France Henry Farman Voisin-Farman No 1 October 30, 1908 |
124.69 km (77.48 miles) USA Wilbur Wright Wright A December 31, 1908 |
110 m (361 ft) USA Wilbur Wright Wright A December 18, 1908 |
544 kg (1,200 lb) USA Wilbur Wright Wright A |
59 kW (79 hp) France Gobron-Brille Gobron |
| 1909 | 76.96 km/h (47.82 mph) France Louis Blériot Blériot XII August 28, 1909 |
234.21 km (145.53 miles) France Henry Farman HF.1 No III December 1, 1909 |
453 m (1,486 ft) France Hubert Latham Antoinette VII December 1, 1909 |
620 kg (1,367 lb) France Louis Blériot Blériot XII |
66 kW (89 hp) France Gobron-Brille Gobron |
| 1910 | 110 km/h (68.2 mph) France Alfred Leblanc Blériot XI October 29, 1910 |
584.7 km (363.34 miles) France Maurice Tabuteau Maurice-Farman December 30, 1910 |
3,100 m (10,170 ft) France Georges Legagneux Hubert Latham Antoinette VII December 1, 1909 |
1,322 kg (2,950 lb) Great Britain Samuel Cody Cody Michelin Cup |
132 kW (177 hp) France Clerget Gobron |
| 1911 | 141.2 km/h (87.73 mph) France Édouard Nieuport Nieuport Nie-2 N June 21, 1911 |
740 km (460 miles) France Armand Gobé Nieuport December 24, 1911 |
3,910 m (12,828 ft) France Roland Garros Blériot XI September 4, 1911 |
1,350 kg (2,976 lb) France Léon Levavasseur Antoinette Monobloc |
132 kW (177 hp) France Clerget Double Clerget 4W |
| 1912 | 174.1 km/h (108.18 mph) France Jules Védrines Deperdussin Monocoque September 9, 1912 |
1,010.89 km (628.14 miles) France Géo Fourny Maurice Farman September 11, 1912 |
5,610 m (18,405 ft) France Roland Garros Morane-Saulnier December 11, 1912 |
147 kW (197 hp) France Clerget Clerget | |
| 1913 | 203.8 km/h (126.66 mph) France Maurice Prévost Deperdussin Monocoque September 29, 1913 |
1,021.19 km (634.54 miles) France A Seguin Henry Farman October 13, 1913 |
6,120 m (20,079 ft) France Georges Legagneux Nieuport II N December 28, 1913 |
4,080 kg (8,995 lb) Russia Igor Sikorsky Russian Knight |
162 kW (217 hp) France Salmson Canton-Unné (CU) 2M7 |
| 1914 | 216.5 km/h (134.54 mph) Great Britain Norman Spratt RAF SE.4 June 1914 |
1,900 km (1,180.61 miles) Germany Werner Landmann Albatros June 28, 1914 |
8,150 m (26,739 ft) Germany Heinrich Oelerich DFW July 14, 1914 |
4,800 kg (10,582 lb) Russia Igor Sikorsky Ilya Muromets A |
168 kW (225 hp) Great Britain Sunbeam |
| 1915 | 6,350 kg (14,000 lb) Great Britain Handley Page Ltd Handley Page 0/100 |
169 kW (227 hp) France Louis Renault Renault 12A | |||
| 1916 | 12,129 kg (26,739 lb) Germany Staaken R.VI |
296 kW (296 hp) France Louis Renault Renault 12F | |||
| 1917 | 12,955 kg (28,561 lb) Germany Staaken R.VII |
298 kW (400 hp) USA Packard & Hall Scott Liberty | |||
| 1918 | 262.4 km/h (163.06 mph) USA Roland Rohlfs Curtiss Wasp August 19, 1918 |
8,808 m (28,897 ft) USA Rudolph Schroeder Bristol F.2B November 18, 1918 |
15,900 kg (35,053 lb) Germany Staaken R.XIVa |
522 kW (700 hp) Italy Fiat Fiat A.14 | |
| 1919 | 307.5 km/h (191.1 mph) France Joseph Sadi-Lecointe Nieuport-Delage 29v December 16, 1919 |
3,032 km (1,884 miles) Great Britain Alcock and Brown Vickers Vimy June 15, 1919 |
10,549 m (34,610 ft) USA Roland Rohlfs Curtiss Wasp September 18, 1919 |
20,263 kg (44,672 lb) Great Britain WG Tarrant Ltd Tarrant Tabor | |
| 1920 | 313 km/h (194.49 mph) France Joseph Sadi-Lecointe Nieuport-Delage 29v December 12, 1920 | ||||
| 1921 | 330 km/h (205.22 mph) France Joseph Sadi-Lecointe Nieuport-Delage September 26, 1921 |
26,000 kg (57,319 lb) Italy SAI Caproni Caproni Ca 60 |
625 kW (838 hp) France Marcel Riffard Breguet-Bugatti 32A | ||
| 1922 | 361 km/h (224.28 mph) USA William Mitchell Curtiss R-6 October 18, 1922 |
4,052 km (2517.8 miles) USA Oakley G. Kelly and John A. Macready Fokker T-2 October 6, 1922 | |||
| 1923 | 430 km/h (267.16 mph) USA Alford J Williams Curtiss R2C-1 November 4, 1923 |
5,300 km (3,293 miles) USA Smith and Richter De Havilland DH.4B August 28, 1923 |
11,145 m (36,565 ft) France Joseph Sadi-Lecointe Nieuport-Delage October 30, 1923 | ||
| 1924 | 448 km/h (278.47 mph) France Florentine Bonnet Bernard Ferbois V2 December 11, 1924 |
746 kW (1,000 hp) Great Britain Napier Cub | |||
| 1925 | |||||
| 1926 | 5,396 km (3,352.92 miles) France Costes and Rignot Breguet 19 GR October 19, 1926 | ||||
| 1927 | 479 km/h (297.83 mph) Italy Mario de Bernardi Macchi M.52 November 4, 1927 |
6,294 km (3,911 miles) USA Chamberlin and Levine Bellanca June 6, 1927 |
11,710 m (38,418 ft) USA CC Champion Wright Apache July 25, 1927 | ||
| 1928 | 513 km/h (318.57 mph) Italy Mario de Bernardi Macchi M.52bis March 30, 1928 |
7,665.3 km (4,763.81 miles) Italy Arturo Ferrarin and Carlo del Prete SIAI-Marchetti S.64 July 5, 1928 | |||
| 1929 | 583 km/h (362 mph) Italy Giuseppe Motta Macchi M.67 August 22, 1929 |
8,029.4 km (4,989.26 miles) France D. Costes and P.Codos Breguet 19 December 17, 1929 |
12,739 m (41,795 ft) Germany Willi Neuenhofen Junkers W 34 May 26, 1929 |
56,000 kg (123,457 lb) Germany Dornier Dornier Do X |
1,119 kW (1,500 hp) Great Britain Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce R |
| 1930 | 8,188.8 km (5,088.28 miles) Italy Maddalena and Cecconi SIAI-Marchetti S.M.64bis June 2, 1930 |
13,157 m (43,166 ft) USA Apollo Soucek Wright Apache June 4, 1930 | |||
| 1931 | 655 km/h (406.94 mph) Great Britain GH Stainforth Supermarine S.6B September 29, 1931 |
10,371 km (6,444.27 miles) France Le Brix and Doret Dewoitine D-33 June 10, 1931 |
2,280 kW (3,058 hp) Italy Fiat Fiat AS.6 | ||
| 1932 | 10,601.5 km (6,587.45 miles) France Bossoutrot and Rossi Blériot 110 March 26, 1932 |
13,404 m (43,976 ft) Great Britain Cyril F Uwins Vickers Vespa September 16, 1932 | |||
| 1933 | 682 km/h (423.82 mph) Italy Francesco Agello Macchi-Castoldi MC-72 April 18, 1933 |
13,660 m (44,816 ft) France Gustave Lemoine Potez 50 September 28, 1933 | |||
| 1934 | 709 km/h (440.68 mph) Italy Francesco Agello Macchi-Castoldi MC-72 October 23, 1934 |
14,432 m (47,352 ft) Italy Renato Donati Caproni Ca 113 AQ April 11, 1934 | |||
| 1935 | 14,575 m (47,818 ft) USSR Vladimir Kokkinaki Polikarpov TsKB-3 (I-15) November 21, 1935 | ||||
| 1936 | 15,223 m (49,944 ft) Great Britain S.R. Swain Bristol 138 September 28, 1936 | ||||
| 1937 | 16,440 m (53,937 ft) Great Britain MJ Adam Bristol 138 | ||||
| 1938 | 11,650 km (7,239 miles) Japan Takahashi and Sekine Gasuden Koken May 16, 1938 |
17,083 m (56,046 ft) Italy Mario Pezzi Caproni 161bis October 22, 1938 | |||
| 1939 | 755 km/h (469.22 mph) Germany Fritz Wendel Messerschmitt Me 209 V1 April 26, 1939 |
12,936 km (8,038 miles) Italy Tondi, Degasso, Vignoli Savoia-Marchetti S.M.75 August 1, 1939 |
544 kgf thrust (1,200 lbf thrust) Germany Pabst von Ohain Heinkel HeS 3B | ||
| 1940 | |||||
| 1941 | 1,004 km/h km/h (623.85 mph) Germany Heini Dittmar Messerschmitt Me 163A October 2, 1941 |
748 kgf thrust (1,650 lbf thrust) Germany Walter HWK R11 | |||
| 1942 | 63,500 kg (140,000 lb) USA Boeing Boeing XB-29 Superfortress |
910 kgf thrust (2,006 lbf thrust) Germany Junkers Motoren Jumo 004 B | |||
| 1943 | 75,500 kg (166,447 lb) Germany Junkers Junkers Ju 390 |
1,700 kgf thrust (3,748 lbf thrust) Germany Walter HWK 109-509 A-2 | |||
| 1944 | 94,339 kg (207,981 lb) Germany Blohm & Voss Blohm & Voss V238 V1 |
2,000 kgf thrust (4,410 lbf thrust) Germany Walter HWK 109-509 C | |||
| 1945 | |||||
| 1946 | 18,081 km (11,235 miles) USA Thomas D Davies Lockheed P2V-1 Neptune October 1, 1946 |
140,614 kg (310,000 lb) USA Convair Convair XB-36 |
2,722 kgf thrust (6,000 lbf thrust) USA Reaction Motors Inc XLR 11-RM-5 | ||
| 1947 | 1,434 km/h (891.07 mph) USA Charles "Chuck" Yeager Bell X-1 November 6, 1947 |
181,437 kg (400,000 lb) USA Hughes Aircraft Co H-4 Hercules | |||
| 1948 | 1,540 km/h (957 mph) USA Charles Yeager Bell X-1 March 26, 1948 |
19,507 m (64,000 ft) USA Charles Yeager Bell X-1 May 26, 1948 |
2,740 kgf thrust (6,041 lbf thrust) USSR Klimov Klimov VK-1 | ||
| 1949 | 37,165 km (23,093 miles) USA James Gallagher Boeing B-50A March 2, 1949 |
21,916 m (71,902 ft) USA Frank Everest Bell X-1 August 8, 1949 |
2,948 kgf thrust (6,500 lbf thrust) Great Britain Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce Avon 100 | ||
| 1950 | 3,969 kgf thrust (8,750 lbf thrust) USA Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney J48-P-5 | ||||
| 1951 | 1,997 km/h (1,240.89 mph) USA William Bridgeman Douglas D-558-2 August 7, 1951 |
24,230 m (79,494 ft) USA William Bridgeman Douglas D-558-2 August 15, 1951 |
4,400 kgf thrust (9,700 lbf thrust) USA Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney J57-P-3 | ||
| 1952 | 190,509 kg (420,000 lb) USA Boeing B-52A Stratofortress | ||||
| 1953 | 2,655 km/h (1,650 mph) USA Charles Yeager Bell X-1A December 12, 1953 |
25,376 m (83,253 ft) USA Marion Carl Douglas D-558-2 August 21, 1953 |
8,700 kgf thrust (19,181 lbf thrust) USSR Mikulin Mikulin AM-3D | ||
| 1954 | 27,566 m (90,440 ft) USA Arthur Murray Bell X-1A August 26, 1954 |
9,500 kgf thrust (20,945 lbf thrust) USSR Mikulin Mikulin AM-3M | |||
| 1955 | 10,000 kgf thrust (22,047 lbf thrust) USSR Lyulka Lyulka AL-7F TRD-31 | ||||
| 1956 | 3,370 km/h (2,094 mph) USA Milburn Apt Bell X-2 September 27, 1956 |
38,376 m (125,907 ft) USA Iven Kincheloe Bell X-2 September 7, 1956 |
204,117 kg (450,000 lb) USA Boeing B-52C Stratofortress | ||
| 1957 | 39,147 km (24,325 miles) USA Archie Old Jr B-52B Stratofortress January 18, 1957 |
12,251 kgf thrust (27,008 lbf thrust) USSR Lyulka Lyulka AL-21F | |||
| 1958 | 221,353 kg (488,000 lb) USA Boeing B-52G Stratofortress | ||||
| 1959 | |||||
| 1960 | 3,534 km/h (2,196 mph) USA Joseph Albert Walker North American X-15 August 4, 1960 |
41,605 m (136,500 ft) USA Robert Michael White North American X-15 August 12, 1960 | |||
| 1961 | 6,587 km/h (4,093 mph) USA Robert White North American X-15 November 9, 1961 | ||||
| 1962 | 6,605 km/h (4,104 mph) USA Joseph Walker North American X-15 June 27, 1962 |
95,936 m (314,750 ft) USA Robert White North American X-15 July 17, 1962 | |||
| 1963 | 107,960 m (354,200 ft) USA Joseph Albert Walker North American X-15 August 22, 1963 | ||||
| 1964 | 249,476 kg (550,000 lb) USA North American XB-70A Valkyrie |
14,742 kgf thrust (32,500 lbf thrust) USA Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney JT11D-20B | |||
| 1965 | 250,000 kg (551,147 lb) USSR Antonov Antonov An-22 Anteus | ||||
| 1966 | |||||
| 1967 | 7,297 km/h (4,534 mph) USA Pete Knight North American X-15 October 3, 1967 | ||||
| 1968 | 348,359 kg (768,000 lb) USA Lockheed C-5A Galaxy |
20,000 kgf thrust (44,095 lbf thrust) USSR Kuznetsov Design Bureau Kuznetsov NK-144 | |||
| 1969 | 21,296 kgf thrust (46,950 lbf thrust) USA Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney JT9D-7AW | ||||
| 1970 | 351,534 kg (775,000 lb) USA Boeing Boeing 747-200B | ||||
| 1971 | 377,842 kg (833,000 lb) USA Boeing Boeing 747-200F |
22,861 kgf thrust (50,400 lbf thrust) USA General Electric General Electric CF6-50C | |||
| 1972 | |||||
| 1973 | 23,496 kgf thrust (51,800 lbf thrust) USA General Electric General Electric CF6-50E | ||||
| 1974 | |||||
| 1975 | |||||
| 1976 | 24,145 kgf thrust (53,230 lbf thrust) USA Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney JT9D-59B | ||||
| 1977 | |||||
| 1978 | 24,190 kgf thrust (53,330 lbf thrust) USA Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney JT9D-7Q1 | ||||
| 1979 | |||||
| 1980 | 24,875 kgf thrust (54,840 lbf thrust) USA Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney JT9D-7Q2 | ||||
| 1981 | |||||
| 1982 | 25,401 kgf thrust (56,000 lbf thrust) USA Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney JT9D-7H1 | ||||
| 1983 | |||||
| 1984 | |||||
| 1985 | 404,994 kg (892,859 lb) USSR Antonov Antonov An-124 Condor |
26,762 kgf thrust (59,000 lbf thrust) USA General Electric General Electric CF6-80C2A1 | |||
| 1986 | 40,213 km (24,987 miles) USA Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager Voyager December 23, 1986[1] | ||||
| 1987 | 27,896 kgf thrust (61,500 lbf thrust) USA General Electric General Electric CF6-80C2A5 | ||||
| 1988 | |||||
| 1989 | 640,000 kg (1,410,958 lb) USSR Antonov Antonov An-225 Mriya | ||||
| 1990 | 27,928 kgf thrust (61,570 lbf thrust) USA Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney 4060A | ||||
| 1991 | |||||
| 1992 | |||||
| 1993 | |||||
| 1994 | |||||
| 1995 | |||||
| 1996 | |||||
| 1997 | |||||
| 1998 | |||||
| 1999 | |||||
| 2000 | |||||
| 2001 | |||||
| 2002 | |||||
| 2003 | |||||
| 2004 | 112,000 m (367,454 ft) USA Brian Binnie Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne October 4, 2004[2] | ||||
| 2005 | 41,467 km (25,766 miles) USA Steve Fossett Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer March 3, 2005[3] | ||||
| 2006 | |||||
| 2007 |
References
[edit]Citations
[edit]- ^ "FAI Record ID #8389 - Distance, C-1e (Landplanes: take off weight 3 000 to 6 000 kg) Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine" Distance over a closed course Archived 2013-12-24 at the Wayback Machine Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI). Retrieved: 21 September 2014.
- ^ "FAI Record ID #9881 - Altitude above the earth's surface with or without maneuvres of the aerospacecraft, Class P-1 (Suborbital missions) Archived 2015-10-18 at the Wayback Machine" Mass Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine Time Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI). Retrieved: 21 September 2014.
- ^ "FAI Record ID #13081 - Distance, C-Powered Aeroplanes (Absolute Record of classes C, H and M) Archived 2014-10-17 at the Wayback Machine" Class-specific Archived 2016-03-05 at the Wayback Machine Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI). Retrieved: 21 September 2014.
Bibliography
[edit]- Gunston, Bill (ed.): Chronicle of Aviation, Chronicle Communications Ltd., 1992, ISBN 1-872031-30-7, pp. 48, 52, 58, 66, 78, 86, 96, 104, 112, 124, 134, 144, 154, 166, 176, 184, 192, 200, 210, 220, 228, 236, 250, 260, 270, 282, 292, 302, 312, 322, 332, 344, 354, 364, 376, 390, 400, 412, 424, 436, 450, 462, 472, 480, 488, 496, 506, 516, 524, 534, 542, 552, 562, 572, 582, 590, 600, 610, 620, 630, 640, 648, 658, 668, 680, 688, 698, 706, 716, 724, 734, 742, 750, 758, 766, 774, 782, 790, 798, 806, 812, 820, 826, 834, 842, 852.