VIDEO: X-51A Waverider hypersonic plane sets record flight at 5.1 times the speed of sound

Unmanned experimental aircraft X-51A Waverider, developed by Boeing for the U.S. Air Force performed the longest hypersonic flight ever conducted, also reaching a record speed of Mach 5.1. The test flight took place above the Californian coast on Wednesday, May 1, 2013. (scroll down for video)

X51A Waverider
Boeing X51A Waverider scramjet sets world record with Mach 5.1 hypersonic speed during test flight (Credit: NASA)
U.S. Air Force announced on Friday that X-51A Waverider flew for three minutes powered by its ramjet engine and reached a speed of Mach 5.1 (6.247km/h).

The test was the fourth and last flight of an X-51A conducted ​​by U.S. Military which spent 300 million dollars to study the hypersonic technology in hopes to develop a new generation of ultra-fast missiles that can hit every corner of the Earth within minutes.

The other three previous flights failed, either because of technical faults or not reaching the proposed speed.

Although the scramjet has been designed to reach speeds of Mach 6, program officials are satisfied with its performance during the last test. “It was a successful mission accomplished,” said project manager Charlie Brink.
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“The X-51A launched from Edwards Air Force Base in California, carried aloft under the left wing of an Air Force Flight Test Center B-52 Stratofortress. It was released while the B-52 flew at 50,000 feet over the Pacific Ocean Point Mugu Naval Air Warfare Center Sea Range. After release, an Army Tactical Missile solid rocket booster accelerated the X-51A to about Mach 4.8 before it and a connecting interstage were jettisoned. The launch and separation were normal,” said NASA officials.

During the test, Waverider traveled a distance of 426 kilometers in six minutes, achieving the longest hypersonic flight of such an aircraft. Engineers gathered information from on board equipment of the airplane which crashed in a controlled way in the Pacific Ocean.

Video: X-51a Scramjet breaks speed record during final test flight

X-51A waverider and B-52
X-51A Waverider carried by a Boeing B-52 before its 5.1 Mach flight (Wikimedia CC0)

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