Aeroplane Aviation Archive — Issue 33 The World’s Fastest Aircraft

T

he need for speed’. This natural instinct is embedded in all

our psyche, so it is of little surprise that from the moment the

Wright brothers staggered into the air,  ying fast became

an obsession. Freed of our ‘earthly’ bonds, previously unimagined

speeds could now be attained and the kudos of being the fastest

person on the planet quickly manifested itself into a new sport...

air racing.

However, with the advent of World War 1, the power games turned

deadly serious. Speed now equated to survival. The art of dog ghting

became the art of energy management, a ballet of life and death. War

powered the technology, and by the early 1920s aircraft were exceeding

200mph. Come World War 2, this speed had already been doubled,

but the limits of propeller-powered aircraft were now reaching their

extremes. The arrival of the jet engine changed everything. Now the

only barrier was the sound barrier and when this was smashed by Chuck

Yeager in 1947, history was changed forever. The 1950s and early 1960s

was a golden time for ‘speed’ with records rapidly changing hands from

one side of the Atlantic to the other, with the UK and US pioneering the

Aviation Archive Series

The World’s Fastest Aircraft

• Editor: Allan Burney • Design: Philip Hempell


• Publisher and Managing Director: Adrian Cox • Executive Chairman: Richard Cox • Commercial Director: Ann Saundry • Group Editor: Nigel Price


• Distribution: Seymour Distribution Ltd +44 (0)20 7429 4000 • Printing: Warners (Midlands) PLC, The Maltings, Manor Lane, Bourne, Lincs PE10 9PH.
  All rights reserved. The entire content of Aviation Archive is © Key Publishing 2017. Reproduction in whole or in part and in any form whatsoever is strictly prohibited without the prior permission of the Publisher. We are unable to guarantee the
  bona  des of any of our advertisers. Readers are strongly recommended to take their own precautions before parting with any information or item of value, including, but not limited to, money, manuscripts, photographs or personal information in
  response to any advertisements within this publication. Published by Key Publishing Ltd, PO Box 100, Stamford, Lincs PE19 1XQ. Tel: +44 (0) 1780 755131. Fax: +44 (0) 1780 757261. Website: http://www.keypublishing.com ISBN: 9781912205028

way. And then along came the aircraft that would smash all records and,

amazingly, remains unsurpassed to this day some 50 years after it tore the

heavens apart... the undisputed speed-master of them all, the Lockheed

SR-71 Blackbird.

This then is the incredible story of man’s conquest of the air, ranging

from the 6.82mph of the Wright Flyer to the Mach 2+ Concorde. Looking

back over the  rst 60 years of powered  ight, ‘Aviation Archive’ has picked

out 26 of the most notable record-breaking aircraft that have gone faster

than anything before. Like Maverick from ‘Top Gun’, quite simply, ‘we feel

the need...’

AVIATION ARCHIVE SERIES

‘The World’s Fastest Aircraft’ is No 33 in the successful ‘Aviation Archive’

series. It features unparalleled photographic coverage, including many

exclusive and rare shots that have never been published before. The

words and photographs are complemented by ‘period’ cutaways from

the talented pens of the ‘Flight’ and ‘Aeroplane’ artists of the era, together

with exclusive aircraft pro les from Pete West and Rolando Ugolini.

The World’s Fastest Aircraft

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