Historical Examples
The first true turbine-equipped jetplaneFrank Whittle's memorial showing a
full-scale model of the Gloster E28/39The first aircraft to incorporate the
principles of the jet engine was the Coanda-1910, piloted by its Romanian
inventor Henri Coandă in 1910. The engine of this aircraft, unlike the modern
jet engine, used a piston engine rather than a turbine to drive its compressor.
The aircraft crashed during its first and only demonstration but remained
intact.
The British flew their Gloster E.28/39 powered by Sir Frank Whittle's turbojet
on May 15, 1941, with Flt Lt PG Sayer as pilot. The United States, upon learning
of the British work, produced the Bell XP-59, with a version of the Whittle
engine built by General Electric which flew on September 12, 1942 with Col L.
Craigie as pilot.
| The first
operational jet fighter was the Messerschmitt Me 262, piloted by Fritz
Wendel. It was the fastest conventional aircraft of World War II - only the
rocket-powered Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet was faster. Mass production
started in 1944, too late for a decisive impact. About the same time, the
United Kingdom's Gloster Meteor made up the first operational jet fighter
squadron in 1944. It was used to defend the UK against the V1 flying bomb
and in ground-attack operations over Europe towards the end of the war. The
Imperial Japanese Navy also developed jet aircraft in 1945, including the
Nakajima J9Y Kikka, partially inspired by German designs. |
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On November 8, 1950, during the Korean War, United States Air Force Lt. Russell
J. Brown, flying in an F-80, intercepted two North Korean MiG-15s near the Yalu
River and shot them down in the first jet-to-jet dogfight in history according
to USAF sources. Soviet Sources say a Mig 15 shot down a P 80.
BOAC operated the first commercial jet service, from London to Johannesburg, in
1952 with the de Havilland Comet jetliner.
The fastest military jet plane was the SR-71 Blackbird at Mach 3.2.
The fastest commercial jet plane was the Tupolev Tu-144 at Mach 2.35.
Captain John Adams released to the press the fact that in 2020, a new jet plane
will be at Mach 3.5.
Virgin Atlantic Airbus A340-600 landing
Modern jets
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Modern jets generally
cruise at speeds of 0.75 to 0.85 Mach, or 75 to 85% of the speed of sound
(420 to 580 mph/ 680-900 km/h). The speed of sound is a function of air
temperature and pressure, and therefore the speed of a jet is not constant
in terms of miles per hour, but varies with atmospheric conditions. NASA and
the FAA have recently been promoting Very Light Jets, small general aviation ircraft seating 4 to 8. |
Other jets
Most people use the term 'jet aircraft' to denote gas turbine based airbreathing
jet engines, however, both rockets and scramjets are both also propelled by
jets.
The fastest airbreathing jet aircraft is the unmanned X-43 scramjet at around
Mach 9-10.
The fastest manned (rocket) aircraft would be the X-15 at Mach 6.85.
The Space Shuttle while far faster, is not normally considered to be an aircraft
during powered ascent, and the orbiter is unpowered when flying as an aircraft
during reentry and landing, so is not properly considered a jet aircraft at
either time.