The Mk-II Aurora aircraft
The Mk-II Aurora aircraft recently achieved a remarkable milestone during its flight over New Zealand. It reached a top speed of Mach 1.1 and climbed to an altitude of 82,500 feet, making it the first supersonic aircraft designed and built in New Zealand. After its initial success, the Mk-II Aurora completed a second flight just six hours later.
In this gallery, we look back at the history of supersonic flight, as well as the recent achievement.
Increasing the frequency of crashes
By the 1930s, aviation test pilots had approached the sound barrier, often with fatal outcomes. Researchers discovered that as speed increased, air behaved differently, affecting control surfaces and propeller performance, increasing the frequency of crashes.
Supermarine Spitfire
During WWII, pilots claimed to have broken the sound barrier, but the assertions were later deemed inaccurate due to turbulence and faulty airspeed indicators. The practical limit for propeller-driven aircraft was around Mach 0.85, with one Supermarine Spitfire reportedly reaching Mach 0.891 in a dive.
Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighters
The Germans claimed to exceed the sound barrier with the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighters, but evidence failed to support the claims. Modern analysis suggests the aircrafts likely could not break the sound barrier while remaining controllable.
Turbojet aircraft
In 1942, the British developed the M.52, a turbojet aircraft aimed at breaking the sound barrier. Although it didn’t achieve the goal, its design innovations contributed to future supersonic flight, culminating in Chuck Yeager’s successful flight on October 14, 1947, in the Bell X-1, reaching Mach 1.06.
Set a record
The Mk-II Aurora flight broke the sound barrier and set a record for the highest altitude reached by a New Zealand aircraft. The Aurora climbed to 66,000 feet in just 118.6 seconds, surpassing a previous record held by a modified F-15 jet by 4.2 seconds.
Achieve performance never seen before
Dawn Aerospace CEO Stefan Powell said, “This achievement highlights the immense potential of rocket-powered aircraft to achieve performance never seen before.”
Major technical risk
Powell added, “With flight test 57, we retired the final major technical risk in the Aurora program: vehicle dynamics through the transonic regime.”
Highest and fastest-flying aircraft
Powell concluded, “This milestone paves the way for the Aurora to become the world’s highest and fastest-flying aircraft.”