The X-15 was the last in a line of manned rocket-powered research airplanes built during the 1950s to explore ever-faster and higher flight regimes. Nineteen years before Space Shuttle, the X-15 showed it was possible to fly into, and out of, space. Launched from the wing of a modified B-52 bomber, the ship rocketed higher and faster than any manned aircraft of the time. There had never been anything like the X-15; it had a million-horsepower engine and could fly twice as fast as a rifle bullet. In the joint X-15 hypersonic research program that NASA conducted with the Air Force, the Navy, and North American Aviation the aircraft flew over a period of nearly 10 years and set unofficial speed and altitude records, in a program to investigate all aspects of piloted hypersonic flight. Information gained from the highly successful X-15 program contributed to the development of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo piloted spaceflight programs as well as the Space Shuttle program.
Aspiring teenage astronauts reveal that a journey to Mars is closer than you think.
Explorer Robert Ballard sets out to solve the mystery of Amelia Earhart's disappearance as he and a ...
A look at the life of legendary American pilot Amelia Earhart, who disappeared while flying over the...
The compelling story of the multi-billion-pound gamble to build the world's biggest airliner, the Ai...
Richthofen goes off to war like thousands of other men. As fighter pilots, they become cult heroes f...
This 2004 documentary by Werner Herzog diaries the struggle of a passionate English inventor to desi...
The story of the Wright Brothers and their efforts to invent, build, and fly the world's first succe...
On 28 November 1979, an Air New Zealand jet with 257 passengers went missing during a sightseeing to...
An exhilarating documentary film that celebrates the unsung hero of aviation - the local airport - b...
Concorde: A Supersonic Story follows the story of the most glamorous aeroplane ever built - told by ...
"Flight Photographers" is an engaging look at the dynamic world of aviation photography, showcasing ...
LIVING IN THE AGE OF AIRPLANES offers a fresh perspective on a modern-day miracle that many of us ta...
It's June 1942 and the world's fate is about to be decided by a handful of pilots and their untested...
During the Second World War, a special project is begun by the US Army Air Corps to integrate Africa...
The first American space station Skylab is found in pieces scattered in Western Australia. Putting t...
Charles Lindbergh struggles to finance and design an airplane that will make his 1927 New York to Pa...
As the Space Race ensues, seven pilots set off on a path to become the first American astronauts to ...
The story of the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of African American pilots who saw combat during the Secon...
This much anticipated sequel to the 2020 hit film, TOMCAT TALES continues the story and legacy of th...