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The X-43A was a small, unmanned test aircraft built by NASA with one goal: to achieve incredible speed. Part of the Hyper-X program, it aimed to prove that a scramjet could operate in real flight, not just inside a wind tunnel. Rather than launching from a runway, the X-43A was carried to high altitude by a B-52, then boosted by a Pegasus rocket to several thousand miles per hour. Only after the booster separated did its scramjet engine ignite. Unlike conventional rockets, the scramjet didn’t ca

On 7 June 2013, the X3 demonstrator broke the speed record and pushed the limits for a helicopter by reaching 472 km/h (255 kt) in stabilised level flight at an altitude of about 10,000 feet (3,048 m). “The X3 is clearly in its element at high speeds,” explained test pilot Hervé Jammayrac. “At 472 km/h, the X3 ’s performance was identical to that achieved in its flight envelope, demonstrating exceptional stability and low vibration levels without the need for an anti-vibration system.” Insight g