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Speed Record Set 50 Years Ago Today

412th Test Wing

Oct. 3, 1999 | 1:43

Fifty years ago on Oct. 3, 1967, Maj. William J. “Pete” Knight flew the modified X-15A-2 to a speed of Mach 6.72. The aircraft was flown with its full ablative coating and external fuel tanks. A dummy ramjet mounted on the lower ventral stub stabilizer fell away during the flight as a result of severe heat damage to the fairing. The flight marked the highest speed achieved in the X-15 program and remains the highest speed ever reached by a manned airplane. The provided video is from a 1999 production, narrated by then Edwards Air Force Base historian Dr. Jim Young, which describes this historic event.