List of rocket-powered aircraft

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This paragraph is an excerpt from Rocket-powered aircraft.[ edit ]
A rocket-powered aircraft or rocket plane is an aircraft that uses a rocket engine for propulsion, sometimes in addition to airbreathing jet engines. Rocket planes can achieve much higher speeds than similarly sized jet aircraft, but typically for at most a few minutes of powered operation, followed by a gliding flight. Unhindered by the need for oxygen from the atmosphere, they are suitable for very high-altitude flight. They are also capable of delivering much higher acceleration and shorter takeoffs. Many rocket aircraft may be drop launched from transport planes, as take-off from ground may leave them with insufficient time to reach high altitudes.
TypeCountryClassRoleDateStatusNo.Notes
Arado E.381 KleinstjägerGermany Air launch Fighter1944Project0Carried by an Arado Ar 234.
Avro 720 UK CTOL 1956Project0Mixed power.
Bachem Ba 349 "Natter"Germany VTOL Fighter1945Production36Point defence interceptor. Never saw action (debatable footage, seems to show a Ba 349 in combat. [1] ). [2]
Bell X-1 USA Air launch Research1947Prototype7First aircraft to break the sound barrier in level flight.
Bell X-2 USA Air launch Research1955Prototype2Supersonic.
Bereznyak-Isayev BI-1 USSR CTOL Fighter19429
Bisnovat 5 USSRCTOL1948ProjectBased on captured DFS 346. Never flew under power.
Cattaneo Magni RR ItalyCTOLResearch1931Prototype
Cheranovsky RP-1 USSRCTOLResearch1932PrototypeTest in 1933 ended in engine failure.
DFS 194 GermanyCTOLExperimental1940Operational1Tailless, direct predecessor of Me 163 series.
Douglas D-558-2 Skyrocket USA Air launch Research1953Operational3Supersonic.
EZ-Rocket USACTOLExperimental2001Prototype1Rocket-powered variant of Rutan Long-EZ.
Focke-Wulf Volksjäger GermanyCTOLFighter1944Project0Three rocket-powered variants under construction at the end of hostilities.
Hawker P.1072 UKCTOL1949Prototype1Mixed power.
Heinkel He 112R GermanyCTOLExperimental1937Operational1Rocket and piston engines.
Heinkel He 176 GermanyCTOLResearch1939Prototype1 Pioneering liquid-fueled rocket propulsion aircraft.
He P.1077 Julia GermanyCTOLFighter1944Project0
Ju EF.127 Walli GermanyCTOLFighter1944Project0
Korolyov RP-318 USSRCTOLResearch19401
Lavochkin La-7RUSSRCTOL19451Rocket and piston engines.
Lippisch Ente GermanyCTOLResearch1928Prototype Opel-RAK program1First rocket-powered aircraft, part of Opel-RAK program.
Lockheed NF-104A USACTOLTrainer19633Rocket and jet engines.
Martin Marietta X-24A USA Air launch Research1969Prototype1Lifting body.
Martin Marietta X-24B USA Air launch Research1973Prototype1Lifting body.
Messerschmitt Me 163 GermanyCTOLFighter1941Production10 A-subtype
~360 B-subtype		Tailless, B-version saw combat May 1944-May 1945.
Messerschmitt Me 263 GermanyCTOLFighter19443Also known as Ju 248, development of Me 163.
Messerschmitt P.1104 Germany Air launch Fighter1944Project0
Mitsubishi J8M JapanCTOLFighter19457Was to have been a licensed Messerschmitt Me 163 but the plans were lost so was only similar.
Mizuno Shinryu II JapanCTOL1945Project0Second aircraft developed in Japan to use a canard design after the J7W1.
North American X-15 USA Air launch Research1959Operational3Hypersonic. Later variants capable of sub-orbital space flight.
Northrop XP-79 USACTOLFighter1944Prototype1 Flying wing. Converted to jet power for first and only flight.
Opel RAK.1 GermanyCTOLResearch1929Operational1First purpose-built rocket-powered aircraft, Opel-RAK program.
Republic XF-91 Thunderceptor USACTOL19492Rocket and jet engines.
Rikugun Ki-202 JapanCTOLFighter19450Improved J8M/Ki-200 with the elongated fuselage.
RRL Mark-III X-racer USACTOLRacer20101 [3]
RRL Mark I X-racer USACTOLRacer20061Customized Velocity SE, prototype for Rocket Racing League. [4] [5]
Saunders-Roe SR.53 UKCTOLFighter1957Prototype2Jet and rocket power.
Saunders-Roe SR.177 UKCTOLFighter1958Project0Jet and rocket power. Development of SR.53.
Silbervogel GermanyCTOLSuborbital Bomber1941Project0Designed to reach very high altitudes and glide to targets in North America.
SNCASO Trident FranceCTOLExperimental1953Prototype8Jet and rocket power.
SNCASE SE.212 Durandal FranceCTOLFighter1956Prototype2Mixed power.
Sombold So 344 Germany Air launch 1944Project0 bomber box buster with a detachable explosive nose.
Sukhoi Su-7 USSRCTOL19441 Sukhoi Su-6 with rocket and piston engines.
Yakovlev Yak-3RDUSSRCTOL1945Prototype1Modified Yakovlev Yak-3 with rocket and piston engines.
Yokosuka MXY7 Ohka Japan Air launch Attack1945Production Kamikaze aircraft.
Zeppelin Fliegende Panzerfaust Germany Air launch 1944Project0Towed behind a Messerschmitt Bf 109G.
Zeppelin Rammer Germany Air launch Fighter1944Project0Designed to use the aerial ramming technique against Allied bombers.

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jet engine</span> Aircraft engine that produces thrust by emitting a jet of gas

A jet engine is a type of reaction engine, discharging a fast-moving jet of heated gas that generates thrust by jet propulsion. While this broad definition may include rocket, water jet, and hybrid propulsion, the term jet engine typically refers to an internal combustion air-breathing jet engine such as a turbojet, turbofan, ramjet, pulse jet, or scramjet. In general, jet engines are internal combustion engines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rocket</span> Vehicle propelled by a reaction gas engine

A rocket is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using any surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely from propellant carried within the vehicle; therefore a rocket can fly in the vacuum of space. Rockets work more efficiently in a vacuum and incur a loss of thrust due to the opposing pressure of the atmosphere.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ramjet</span> Supersonic atmospheric jet engine

A ramjet is a form of airbreathing jet engine that requires forward motion of the engine to provide air for combustion. Ramjets work most efficiently at supersonic speeds around Mach 3 and can operate up to Mach 6.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">VTOL</span> Aircraft takeoff and landing done vertically

A vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft is one that can take off and land vertically without relying on a runway. This classification can include a variety of types of aircraft including helicopters as well as thrust-vectoring fixed-wing aircraft and other hybrid aircraft with powered rotors such as cyclogyros/cyclocopters and gyrodynes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North American X-15</span> Rocket-powered aircraft and spaceplane operated by the US Air Force and NASA

The North American X-15 is a hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft operated by the United States Air Force and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the X-plane series of experimental aircraft. The X-15 set speed and altitude records in the 1960s, crossing the edge of outer space and returning with valuable data used in aircraft and spacecraft design. The X-15's highest speed, 4,520 miles per hour, was achieved on 3 October 1967, when William J. Knight flew at Mach 6.7 at an altitude of 102,100 feet (31,120 m), or 19.34 miles. This set the official world record for the highest speed ever recorded by a crewed, powered aircraft, which remains unbroken.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scramjet</span> Jet engine where combustion takes place in supersonic airflow

A scramjet is a variant of a ramjet airbreathing jet engine in which combustion takes place in supersonic airflow. As in ramjets, a scramjet relies on high vehicle speed to compress the incoming air forcefully before combustion, but whereas a ramjet decelerates the air to subsonic velocities before combustion using shock cones, a scramjet has no shock cone and slows the airflow using shockwaves produced by its ignition source in place of a shock cone. This allows the scramjet to operate efficiently at extremely high speeds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Assisted take-off</span> System used to help aircraft get into the air

In aviation, assisted takeoff is any system for helping aircraft to get into the air. The reason it might be needed is due to the aircraft's weight exceeding the normal maximum takeoff weight, insufficient power, insufficient available runway length, or a combination of all three factors. Assisted takeoff is also required for gliders, which do not have an engine and are unable to take off by themselves.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NASA X-43</span> Unmanned US experimental hypersonic aircraft, 1991-2000

The NASA X-43 was an experimental unmanned hypersonic aircraft with multiple planned scale variations meant to test various aspects of hypersonic flight. It was part of the X-plane series and specifically of NASA's Hyper-X program developed in the late 1990s. It set several airspeed records for jet aircraft. The X-43 is the fastest jet-powered aircraft on record at approximately Mach 9.6.

Thrust-to-weight ratio is a dimensionless ratio of thrust to weight of a rocket, jet engine, propeller engine, or a vehicle propelled by such an engine that is an indicator of the performance of the engine or vehicle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rocket-powered aircraft</span> Aircraft which uses a rocket engine for propulsion

A rocket-powered aircraft or rocket plane is an aircraft that uses a rocket engine for propulsion, sometimes in addition to airbreathing jet engines. Rocket planes can achieve much higher speeds than similarly sized jet aircraft, but typically for at most a few minutes of powered operation, followed by a gliding flight. Unhindered by the need for oxygen from the atmosphere, they are suitable for very high-altitude flight. They are also capable of delivering much higher acceleration and shorter takeoffs. Many rocket aircraft may be drop launched from transport planes, as take-off from ground may leave them with insufficient time to reach high altitudes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flight envelope</span> Aerodynamic performance of an air or spacecraft

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">XCOR Aerospace</span> American private rocket engine and spaceflight development company

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rocket Racing League</span> Former air racing league

The Rocket Racing League was a racing league that planned to use rocket-powered aircraft to race a closed-circuit air racetrack. Founded in 2005, the league made its first public flights in 2010 and was working to begin regular racing seasons. The "Rocket Racers" were slated to compete in the air and on a virtual racetrack easily viewed by a live audience as well as projected on large screen and handheld electronic displays.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ARCAspace</span> Aerospace company headquartered in Romania

Romanian Cosmonautics and Aeronautics Association, also known as ARCAspace, is an aerospace company based in Râmnicu Vâlcea, Romania. It builds rockets, high-altitude balloons, and unmanned aerial vehicles. It was founded in 1999 as a non-governmental organization in Romania by the Romanian engineer and entrepreneur Dumitru Popescu and other rocket and aeronautics enthusiasts. Since then, ARCA has launched two stratospheric rockets and four large-scale stratospheric balloons including a cluster balloon. It was awarded two governmental contracts with the Romanian government and one contract with the European Space Agency. ARCASpace is currently developing several rocket systems, both orbital and suborbital, under the EcoRocket program. These vehicles include the CER rocket systems, the EcoRocket Demonstrator, Nano, 5 & Heavy, and the A1 strategic anti-ballistic interceptor. ARCA has yet to launch a vehicle above the Karman line, or sent a payload to orbit, with the majority of their projects having been abandoned due to various reasons, often including financial or regulatory constraints.

Scramjet programs refers to research and testing programs for the development of supersonic combustion ramjets, known as scramjets. This list provides a short overview of national and international collaborations, and civilian and military programs. The USA, Russia, India, and China (2014), have succeeded at developing scramjet technologies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">VTVL</span> Method of takeoff and landing used by rockets; vertical takeoff, vertical landing

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glider (aircraft)</span> Aircraft designed for operation without an engine

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air-launch-to-orbit</span> Method of launching rockets at altitude from a conventional horizontal-takeoff aircraft

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drop test</span> Method of testing aircraft/spacecraft

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References

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