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Revision as of 09:25, 4 November 2003 by Chris 73 (talk | contribs) (Added Chuck Yeager & Me 262 Info.)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Any speed over the speed of sound, which is 1,225 km/h at sea level, is said to be supersonic. Many modern fighter aircraft are supersonic. The Concorde is a supersonic passenger aircraft, currently the only one flying. Speeds greater than 5 times the speed of sound are sometimes referred to as hypersonic.
Chuck Yeager is the first person to travel faster than Mach 1, the speed of sound, in level flight. On October 14, 1947, Yeager broke the sound barrier flying the Bell X-1 at an altitude of 45,000 feet.
It is believed that the ], the first operational jet powered aircraft, was able to break the sound barrier during dives. There are numerous reports of pilots of sudden, strange aerodynamic behavior during dives that are consistent with the effects while breaking the sound barrier, plus a number of unexplained crashes during high speed dives. Pilots described it as the plane being hit with a large hammer, often resulting in damage to the plane.
See also: