4 May 1924: At 7:30 a.m., Étienne Edmond Oehmichen (1884–1955), an engineer for Société Anonyme des Automobiles et Cycles Peugeot, flew his four-rotor L’Hélicoptère Nº2 around a triangular closed circuit of approximately 1 kilometer (0.62 mile) at Valentigney, France. The flight took 7 minutes, 40 seconds. It was observed by the public, members of the press and officials of the Service Technique de l’ Aéronautique (S.T.Aé, the French air ministry). For his accomplishment, Oehmichen was awarded a prize of ₣90,000 by the government of France.
FLIGHT reported:
A Fresh Helicopter Record
M. Oemichen has been continuing his experiments at Valentigny with his helicopter, and on Sunday, May 4, established a record for helicopters by accomplished a flight of more than one kilometre—1,100 yards—in a closed circuit. The flight lasted 7 mins. 40 secs. and during most of the time the machine maintained a height of about 3 feet, but sometimes rose to 10 feet. The flight was officially observed by a representative of the Department of Military Aeronautics. By this performance M. Oemichen wins an award of 90,000 francs given by the French Government.
FLIGHT, The Aircraft Engineer & Airships, No. 802 (No. 19, Vol. XVI.) May 8, 1924, Page 267, Column 1
The previous month, Oehmichen had set two FAI world rotorcraft records for distance in a straight line. On 14 April 1924, he flew 360 meters (1,181 feet)¹, and on 17 April, 525 meters (1,722 feet).²
On 14 September 1924, he would set two records for altitude, 1 meter (3.28 feet) with a 100 kilogram (220 pounds) and a 200 kilogram (441 pounds) payload.³
One of the configurations of Oemichen’s helicopter.
Oehmichen’s helicopter (also referred to by some sources as the Peugeot Nº2) was a cross-shaped structure built of metal tubing. Lift was generated by four two-bladed, counter-rotating, main rotors. Two rotors had a diameter of 6.5 meters (21 feet, 4 inches), and the other two, 7.5 meters (24 feet, 7 inches). They all turned at 145 r.p.m. Blade pitch was controlled by warping.
The helicopter had another five rotors positioned in the horizontal plane. Three had a diameter of 1.45 meters (4 feet, 9 inches), and two, 1.55 meters (5 feet, 1 inch). These had reversible pitch were used to provide lateral control. Two variable-pitch pusher propellers with a diameter of 1.40 meters (4 feet, 7 inches) were positioned on each side of the lateral structure, and were driven by belts. The helicopter was steered by another small rotor at the front.
“Ensemble perspectif sçhématique des sustentateurs, propulseurs et évoluers de l’hélicoptère Oemichen-Peogeot Nº 2.” (L’Aéronautique, 6me Année. Nº 61, Juin 1924, at Page 138)
With the helicopter having an operating weight of approximately 1,000 kilograms (2,205 pounds), the rotors had a load factor of 33 kilograms per square meter (6.8 pounds per square foot).
L’hélicoptère Nº2 was powered by a single Société des Moteurs Gnome et Rhône Type R nine-cylinder rotary engine placed vertically near the center of the structure.
The Le Rhône Type R, introduced in 1917, was an air-cooled, normally-aspirated, 15.892 liter (969.786 cubic inches) nine-cylinder overhead valve rotary engine with two valves per cylinder. The Type R produced 170 cheval vapeur (167.7 horsepower) at 1,360 r.p.m. The engine was 0.990 meters (3 feet, 2.9 inches) long, 0.995 meters (3 feet, 3.2 inches) in diameter, and weighed 166 kilograms (366 pounds).
Étienne Oehmichen’s Helicopter No. 2, 4 May 1924.
¹ FAI Record File Number 13093
² FAI Record File Number 13095
³ FAI Record Files 13091 (100 kilograms) and 13092 (200 kilograms)
Lockheed YF-12A 60-6936, flies test mission near Edwards Air Force Base, Califrnia. (U.S. Air Force)
1 May 1965: Lockheed YF-12A 60-6936 established five Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Records for Speed: 3,351.507 kilometers per hour (2,070.102 m.p.h.) over a 15/25 Kilometer Straight Course; 2,644.22 kilometers per hour (1,643.04 miles per hour) over a 500 Kilometer Closed Circuit; and 2,718.01 kilometers per hour (1,688.89 miles per hour) over a 1,000 Kilometer Closed Circuit. On the same day, 6936 set an FAI World Record for Altitude in Horizontal Flight of 24,463 meters (80,259 feet).
The World Record-setting flight crews, from left to right, Captain James P. Cooney, Major Walter F. Daniel, Colonel Robert L. Stephens, Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Andre and Major Neil T. Warner. (U.S. Air Force)
The YF-12A interceptor prototype was flown by pilots Major Walter F. Daniel and Colonel Robert L. Stephens, with fire control officers Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Andre, Major Neil T. Warner and Captain James P. Cooney. Colonel Stephens and Lieutenant Colonel Andre were awarded the Thompson Trophy for the “J” Division, 1965. Their trophy is in the collection of the National Museum of the United States Air Force.
Lockheed YF-12A 60-6936 taking off from Edwards Air Force Base during the speed record trials, 1 May 1965. The white cross on the aircraft’s belly was to assist timers and observers. (U.S. Air Force)
FAI Record File Num #3972 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Speed over a closed circuit of 1 000 km with 1 000 kg payload
Performance: 2 718.01 km/h
Date: 1965-05-01
Course/Location: Edwards AFB, CA (USA)
Claimant Walter F. Daniel (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed YF-12A (06936)
Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney J-58/JTD11D-20A
FAI Record File Num #3973 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Speed over a closed circuit of 1 000 km with 2 000 kg payload
Performance: 2 718.01 km/h
Date: 1965-05-01
Course/Location: Edwards AFB, CA (USA)
Claimant Walter F. Daniel (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed YF-12A (06936)
Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney J-58/JTD11D-20A
FAI Record File Num #8534 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Altitude in horizontal flight
Performance: 24 463 m
Date: 1965-05-01
Course/Location: Edwards AFB, CA (USA)
Claimant R.L. Stephens (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed YF-12A
Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney J-58/JTD11D-20A
FAI Record File Num #8855 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Speed over a closed circuit of 500 km without payload
Performance: 2 644.22 km/h
Date: 1965-05-01
Course/Location: Edwards AFB, CA (USA)
Claimant Walter F. Daniel (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed YF-12A
Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney J-58/JTD11D-20A
FAI Record File Num #8926 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Speed over a closed circuit of 1 000 km without payload
Performance: 2 718.006 km/h
Date: 1965-05-01
Course/Location: Edwards AFB, CA (USA)
Claimant Walter F. Daniel (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed YF-12A
Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney J-58/JTD11D-20A
FAI Record File Num #9059 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Speed over a straight 15/25 km course
Performance: 3 331.507 km/h
Date: 1965-05-01
Course/Location: Edwards AFB, CA (USA)
Claimant R.L. Stephens (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed YF-12A
Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney J-58/JTD11D-20A
World Speed Record holders and Thompson Trophy winners, Colonel Robert L. Stephens and Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Andre. (U.S. Air Force)
60-6936 was one of three Mach 3 YF-12A interceptors designed and built by Kelly Johnson’s “Skunk Works”. It was developed from the CIA’s Top Secret A-12 Oxcart reconnaissance airplane. The YF-12A was briefly known as the A-11, which was a cover story to hide the existence of the A-12. Only three were built. The Air Force ordered 93 F-12B interceptors into production as a replacement for the Convair F-106A Delta Dart, but for three straight years Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara refused to release the funds that had been appropriated. In 1968, the F-12B project was cancelled.
On 24 June 1971, 60-6936 suffered an in-flight fire while on approach to Edwards Air Force Base. The crew successfully ejected and the airplane crashed a few miles to the north of EDW. It was totally destroyed.
The only surviving example of a YF-12A, 60-6935, is in the collection of the National Museum of the United States Air Force.
The 1965 Thompson Trophy on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. (U.S. Air Force)
Jackie Cochran with the Lockheed TF-104G Starfighter, N104L. (FAI)
1 May 1963: At Edwards Air Force Base, California, Jacqueline (“Jackie”) Cochran, Colonel, U.S. Air Force Reserve, established a Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI)World Speed Record when she flew this two-place Lockheed TF-104G Starfighter, FAA registration N104L, named Free World Defender, over a 100-kilometer (62.137-mile) closed circuit at an average speed of 1,937.15 kilometers per hour (1,203.69 miles per hour).¹
Jackie Cochran wrote about flying the 100-kilometer course in her autobiography:
The 100 kilometer closed course was so damn difficult. Imagine an absolutely circular racetrack, about a quarter of a mile wide, on the ground with an inner fence exactly 63 miles long. Now, in your mind’s eye, leave the track and get into the air at 35,000 feet. Fly it without touching the fence in the slightest. It’s tricky because if you get too far away from the inner fence, trying not to touch, you won’t make the speed you need to make the record. And if you get too close, you’ll disqualify yourself.
Eyes are glued to the instrument panel. Ears can hear the voice of the space-positioning officer. You are dealing in fractions of seconds. And your plane isn’t flying in flat position. It’s tipped over to an 80-degree bank to compensate for the circle. That imaginary inner fence may be to your left, but you don’t head your plane left. That’d lose altitude. Instead, you pull the nose up a bit and because the plane is so banked over, you move closer to the fence. You turn.
—Jackie Cochran: An Autobiography, by Jacqueline Cochran and Maryann Bucknum Brinley, Bantam Books, New York 1987, Page 314.
She had flown this same F-104 to an earlier speed record at Edwards Air Force Base, 12 April 1963.
N104L was retained by Lockheed for use as a customer demonstrator to various foreign governments. In 1965 Lockheed sold N104L to the Dutch Air Force, where it served as D-5702 until 1980. It next went to the Turkish Air Force until it was retired in 1989.
Lockheed TF-104G Starfighter N104L, World Speed Record holder. (Lockheed)
30 April 1962: The Chief Research Test Pilot at NASA’s High Speed Flight Station, Joseph Albert Walker, flew the first North American Aviation X-15 hypersonic research aircraft, 56-6670, on its twenty-seventh flight. This was Flight 52 of the NASA X-15 Hypersonic Research Program. The purpose of this test flight was to explore aerodynamic heating and stability at very high altitudes.
At an altitude of approximately 45,000 feet (13,716 meters) over Mud Lake, Nevada, the X-15 was released from Balls 8, the NB-52B drop ship, at 10:23:20.0 a.m., Pacific Daylight Savings Time.
This NASA image depicts three X-15 flight profiles. Mud Lake, Nevada, is near the right edge of the image. (NASA)
Walker started the Reaction Motors XLR99-RM-1 rocket engine. The planned burn time was 81.0 seconds, but the engine ran slightly longer: 81.6 seconds. Even with the longer burn, the X-15 undershot the planned speed of Mach 5.35 and peak altitude of 255,000 feet (77,724 meters). The actual maximum speed for this flight was Mach 4.94, and maximum altitude, 246,700 feet (75,194 meters). Walker landed on Rogers Dry Lake. The total duration of Flight 52 was 9 minutes, 46.2 seconds.
Even though the peak altitude reached by the X-15 was 8,300 feet (2,530 meters) lower than expected, Joe Walker established a new Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Altitude Gain, Aeroplane Launched from a Carrier Aircraft, of 61,493 meters (201,749 feet).¹
Joe Walker with the Number 2 North American Aviation X-15, 56-6671, on Rogers Dry Lake. Walker is wearing a David Clark Co. MC-2 full-pressure suit (NASA)
28 April 1961: Colonel Georgy Konstantinovich Mosolov, Hero of the Soviet Union, flew a prototype Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21F interceptor, the Ye-6T/1, 31 Red, to a Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Altitude of 34,714 meters (113,891 feet).¹ This exceeded the record set five months earlier by Captain Joe B. Bailey, U.S. Air Force, with a Lockheed F-104C Starfighter, by 3,201 meters (10,502 feet).²
Mikoyan-Gurevich Ye-6T/1 prototype, “31 Red”. (Wings of Russia)
The Ye-6T/1 and Ye-6T/3 were converted from the first and third MiG-21F prototypes. These experimental airplanes were built to test various missiles, engines and canard/wing configurations.
Ye-6T/1 was powered by a Tumansky R-11F2-300 afterburning turbojet engine and carried a liquid-fueled Sevruk S3-20M5A rocket engine mounted under the fuselage. The rocket produced 29.42 kilonewtons (6,614 pounds of thrust) at Sea Level. The prototype carried sufficient rocket fuel for 100 seconds burn time.
Mosolov set two world speed records with the Ye-6T/1 on 31 October 1959, with a performance of 2,388.00 kilometers per hour over a straight 15/25 kilometer course,³ and a 100 kilometer closed course.⁴
Mikoyan-Gurevich Ye-6T, prototype MiG-21-F-13
Major General Vladimir Konstantinovich Kokkinai had also set a world speed record with 31 Red. On 16 September 1960, Kokkinaki flew the Ye-6T/1 to 2,148.66 kilometers per hour (1,335 miles per hour) around a 100 kilometer closed course.⁵
Ye-6T/1 and Ye-6T/3 became the prototypes for the MiG-21-F-13 short range supersonic interceptor (NATO designation: Fishbed-C)
A Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21-F-13, “63 Red,” at the Smithsonian Institution National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center
The Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-21-Ф-13 (Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21F-13) is a short-range supersonic interceptor with a “tailed-delta” configuration. The MiG-21-F-13 is 13.46 meters (44 feet, 1.9 inches) long, with a wingspan of 7.154 meters (23 feet, 5.7 inches), and height of 4.71 meters (15 feet, 5.4 inches). It has an empty weight of 4,871 kilograms (10,739 pounds), and a normal takeoff weight of 7,100 kilograms (15,653 pounds).
The MiG-21-F-13 was powered by a single Tumansky R-11F-300 engine. This is a dual-spool, axial-flow turbojet with afterburner. It has a 6-stage compressor section (3 low- and 3 high-pressure stages) and a 2-stage turbine (1 high- and 1 low-pressure stage). The R-11F-300 is rated at 8,600 pounds of thrust (38.26 kilonewtons), and 11,200 pounds (49.82 kilonewtons) with afterburner. It is 4.600 meters (15 feet, 1.1 inches) long, 0.907 meters (2 feet, 11.7 inches) in diameter, and weighs 1,124 kilograms (2,477 pounds).
The MiG-21-F-13 had a maximum speed of 1,200 kilometers per hour (746 miles per hour) at Sea Level, and 2,175 kilometers per hour (1,351 miles per hour) at high altitude. It could reach its service ceiling of 19,000 meters (62,334 feet) in just over 13 minutes. Its range is 1,300 kilometers (808 miles).
The -F-13 was armed with one Nudelman-Rikhter NR-30 30 mm autocannon with 30 rounds of ammunition, and two Vympel R-3S infrared-homing air-to-air missiles (NATO: AA-2A Atoll).
Colonel Georgy Konstantinovich Mosolov, Hero of the Soviet Union
Georgy Konstantinovich Mosolov was born 3 May 1926 at Ufa, Bashkortostan, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. He was educated at the Central Aviation Club, where he graduated in 1943, and then went to the Special Air Forces School. In 1945 he completed the Primary Pilot School and was assigned as an instructor at the Chuguev Military Aviation School at Kharkiv, Ukraine.
In 1953 Mosolov was sent to the Ministry of Industrial Aviation Test Pilot School at Ramenskoye Airport, southeast of Moscow, and 6 years later, to the Moscow Aviation Institute. He was a test pilot at the Mikoyan Experimental Design Bureau from 1953 to 1959, when he became the chief test pilot.
Georgy Mosolov set six world speed and altitude records. He was named a Hero of the Soviet Union, 5 October 1960, and Honored Test Pilot of the Soviet Union, 20 September 1967. The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale awarded him its Henry De La Vaulx Medal three times: 1960, 1961 and 1962. The medal is presented to the holder of a recognized absolute world aviation record, set the previous year.
Mikoyan-Gurevich Ye-8/1, 81 Red. This is the airplane Mosolov flew on 11 September 1962. (Mikoyan)
On 11 September 1962, an experimental Mikoyan Ye-8 that Colonel Mosolov was flying suffered a catastrophic compressor failure at Mach 2.15. Engine fragments heavily damaged to prototype and it began to break apart. Severely injured, Mosolov ejected from the doomed airplane at Mach 1.78. He had suffered a severe head injury, two broken arms and a broken leg during the ejection and became entangled in the parachute’s shroud lines. His other leg was broken when he landed in a forest. The following day he suffered cardiac arrest. During a surgical procedure, he went in to cardiac arrest a second time.
Georgy Mosolov recovering in a hospital, 1962. (Мужская работа)
Mosolov survived but his test flying career was over. His recovery took more than a year, and though he was able to fly again, he could not resume his duties as a test pilot.
Georgy Mosolov served as an international representative for Aeroflot until 1992. He was also a department head at the Higher Komsomol School (Moscow University for the Humanities).
Mosolov was Chairman of the USSR Hockey Federation from 1969 to 1973. He was an Honored Master of Sports of the USSR.
Colonel Georgy Konstantinovich Mosolov, Soviet Air Forces, Hero of the Soviet Union, died 17 March 2018, at Moscow, Russia, at the age of 91 years. He was buried at the Vagankovsoye cemetery in Moscow.
