The race to break the sound barrier pushed aircraft, engineers and test pilots into territory where planes could shake violently or even disintegrate. Britain spent years developing the Miles M.52 and ...

In 1947, the United States achieved one of the most important milestones in aviation when the Bell X-1 became the first ...

The X-1’s fuselage was designed to resemble a .50 caliber bullet—one of the only shapes known to have stable flight at supersonic speeds. The Bell X-1 hangs today from the ceiling of the National Air ...