An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or, in a few cases, the downward thrust from jet engines. Common examples of aircraft include airplanes, helicopters, airships, gliders, paramotors, and hot air balloons.
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.
A tail-sitter, or tailsitter, is a type of VTOL aircraft that takes off and lands on its tail, then tilts horizontally for forward flight.
The Ryan X-13 Vertijet was an experimental vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) jet aircraft built by Ryan Aeronautical and flown in the United States in the 1950s. The main objective of the project was to demonstrate the ability of a pure jet to vertically takeoff, hover, transition to horizontal forward flight, and vertically land.
The BQM-74 Chukar is a series of aerial target drones produced by Northrop. The Chukar has gone through three major revisions, including the initial MQM-74A Chukar I, the MQM-74C Chukar II, and the BQM-74C Chukar III. They are recoverable, remote controlled, subsonic aerial target, capable of speeds up to Mach 0.86 and altitudes from 30 to 40,000 ft.
The Lockheed Senior Prom was a classified black project conducted by the United States Air Force in conjunction with the Lockheed Corporation's Skunk Works for the development and testing of a cruise missile using stealth technology. Based on the company's Have Blue demonstrator, the six Senior Prom vehicles proved successful in testing conducted at Area 51 in the late 1970s; despite this, the aircraft was not selected to enter production, and the program was terminated in the early 1980s.
The Rockwell XFV-12 was a prototype supersonic United States Navy fighter which was built in 1977. The XFV-12 design attempted to combine the Mach 2 speed and AIM-7 Sparrow armament of the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II in a VTOL fighter for the small Sea Control Ship which was under study at the time. On paper, it looked superior to the subsonic Hawker Siddeley Harrier attack fighter. However it was unable to demonstrate an untethered vertical takeoff and its inability to meet performance requirements terminated the program.
The Microturbo TRI 60 is a small, expendable turbojet engine developed for use in cruise missiles, target drones, and other small unmanned air vehicles. Variants of this engine produce from 3.5 - 5.3 kN of thrust. The engine first ran in 1974.
The RGM-59 Taurus was an American project, conducted by the United States Navy, that was intended to develop a surface-to-surface missile for use as a fire support weapon during amphibious landings, replacing heavy-caliber naval guns. Developed during the early 1960s, the project was cancelled before any hardware development was undertaken.
The Interstate XBDR was a design for an assault drone - an early television-guided missile - powered by two jet engines, that was designed by the Interstate Aircraft and Engineering Corporation during the latter stages of the Second World War for use by the United States Navy. Wind tunnel tests of a scale model were conducted, however no full-scale examples of the aircraft were built before the project was cancelled.
The Interstate TDR was an early unmanned combat aerial vehicle — referred to at the time as an "assault drone" — developed by the Interstate Aircraft and Engineering Corporation during the Second World War for use by the United States Navy. Capable of being armed with bombs or torpedoes, 2000 aircraft were ordered, but only around 200 were built. The type saw some service in the Pacific Theater against the Japanese, but continuing developmental issues affecting the aircraft, along with the success of operations using more conventional weapons, led to the decision being made to cancel the assault drone program in October 1944.
The Naval Aircraft Factory TDN was an early unmanned combat aerial vehicle - referred to at the time as an "assault drone" - developed by the United States Navy's Naval Aircraft Factory during the Second World War. Developed and tested during 1942 and 1943, the design proved moderately successful, but development of improved drones saw the TDN-1 relegated to second-line duties, and none were used in operational service.
The AQM-127 Supersonic Low-Altitude Target (SLAT) was a target drone developed during the 1980s by Martin Marietta for use by the United States Navy. Derived from Martin Marietta's work on the cancelled ASALM missile, SLAT proved to have severe difficulties in flight testing, and the project was cancelled during 1991.
The Creative Research On Weapons or Crow program was an experimental missile project developed by the United States Navy's Naval Air Missile Test Center during the late 1950s. Intended to evaluate the solid-fueled integral rocket/ramjet (SFIRR) method of propulsion as well as solid-fueled ramjet engines, flight tests were conducted during the early 1960s with mixed success.
RIM-85 was a short-lived project by the United States Navy to develop a surface-to-air missile for the defense of naval vessels. Developed during the late 1960s, the project was cancelled before the start of detailed design work.
Glomb, from "glide bomb", was a project undertaken by the United States Navy during World War II to develop an unmanned aircraft for delivering bombs to high-value, well-protected targets without risk to aircrew. The project proceeded through the war, producing several prototype aircraft, but technical limitations meant no Glombs saw operational service and the program was cancelled at the end of the war.
The Taylorcraft LBT was a glider designed and built by Taylorcraft during World War II, in response to a United States Navy requirement for a glide bomb. One of three prototype "Glomb" models ordered by the Navy, the LBT suffered from technical and performance difficulties, and was cancelled early in production, none of the aircraft seeing operational service.
The Republic SD-3 Snooper was an early reconnaissance drone developed by Republic Aviation for the United States Army. It was evaluated by the Army Signal Corps in 1959, but did not enter operational service.
The Republic SD-4 Swallow was an early high-speed reconnaissance drone developed by Republic Aviation for the United States Army. Intended for use by the U.S. Army Signal Corps to target tactical ballistic missiles, it was cancelled before the first prototype could be completed, and did not see operational service.
The Fairchild SD-5 Osprey was an early high-speed reconnaissance drone developed by Fairchild Aircraft for the United States Army. Intended for use by the U.S. Army Signal Corps to target tactical ballistic missiles, it was cancelled before the first prototype could be completed, and did not see operational service.
