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 …

Feb 28, 2014 · Although the number two aircraft was later modified, the basic X-15 was a single-seat, mid-wing monoplane designed to explore the areas of high aerodynamic heating rates, …

The flights of the North American X-15, an experimental American spaceplane built by North American Aviation and operated by the United States Air Force and NASA, were conducted …

Jul 28, 2020 · Bold, black and blazing fast: The North American X-15 was a plane unlike any other. And although it first flew over 60 years ago, it is still the quickest manned aircraft ever to …

Oct 13, 2023 · On Oct. 15, 1958, the first X-15 hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft rolled out of its factory. A joint project among NASA, the U.S. Air Force, and the U.S. Navy, the X-15 greatly …

Its purpose was to fly high and fast, testing the machine and subjecting pilots to conditions that future astronauts would face. It made the first manned flights to the edges of space and was …

Sep 17, 2024 · A joint project among NASA, the U.S. Air Force, and the U.S. Navy, the X-15’s first powered flight took place on Sept. 17, 1959, at the Flight Research Center, now the Armstrong …

The X-15 was air launched from a B-52 aircraft at 45,000 feet and at a speed of about 500 mph. After dropping from the B-52, the rocket engine provided thrust for the first 80 to 120 seconds …

Feb 2, 2025 · The X-15 was the first aircraft to cross the boundaries of outer space. It was also the first airplane to reach hypersonic speed. Neil A. Armstrong, a NASA pilot and the first …

Mar 20, 2025 · X-15, rocket-powered research aircraft built in the 1950s by North American Aviation, Inc., for the U.S. military and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in …