Bell X-2Even before the spectacular success of its X-1 rocket-powered aircraft in breaking the 'sound barrier', the adventurous Bell Aircraft Corporation was already pushing ahead with a parallel project to build a second aircraft capable of far higher speeds. The X-2 (or Model 52) explored the equally uncertain technology of swept-back wings. Now common in modern conventional fighter aircraft, the Bell X-2 was revolutionary in using this type of airframe to probe Mach 3 and research the effects of extreme aerodynamic friction heat on airframes. Although both X-2s were destroyed in crashes after only 20 flights, killing two test pilots, the knowledge gained from the programme was invaluable in developing aircraft that could safely fly at such speeds. Using stunning artwork and historical photographs, this is the story of the plane that ultimately made the Lockheed Blackbird and Concorde possible. |
Contents
| 4 | |
| 7 | |
Power And Pilot Protection | 21 |
Aloft At Last | 36 |
Triumph Before Tragedy | 46 |
Things That Are Dangerous | 62 |
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Common terms and phrases
aerodynamic AFFTC ailerons airframe August Aviation batteries BELL X-2 Bell's Bob Rohrer bomb-bay bomber canopy captive flights Carrie Rasberry carrier aircraft chase pilot Chuck Yeager climb cockpit Curtiss-Wright degrees F Edwards AFB Everest explore F-100 Super Sabre fighter flaps flew Flight Test flying fuselage GEDA glide flight ground helmet high-speed hydraulic ignition inertia coupling installed instrument Iven Kincheloe jettison Kincheloe's landing gear later launch lox tank Mach main skid maneuvers NACA NACA’s NASA nitrogen North American Aviation nose nose-wheel oxygen Panopalis parachute Pete powered flight propellant tanks reached Mach rear fuselage rocket chamber rocket engine rocket motor rocket plane rudder Sabre simulator stability supersonic supersonic flight supersonic speeds swept wing swept-wing switch T-Stoff tailplane takeoff temperatures Tempilaq test pilot Theodore von Kármán thrust transonic turbopump undercarriage USAAF USAF weight whisker skids wind tunnel wingtip X-2 flight X-2 pilot X-2 program X-plane Ziegler