Glider Aircraft - Rocket Gliders

Rocket Gliders

Rocket-powered aircraft consume their fuel quickly, and so most must land unpowered, unless there is another type of engine. The first was the Lippisch Ente. Later examples include the Messerschmitt Me 163 rocket-powered interceptor. The American series of research aircraft starting with the Bell X-1 in 1946 up to the North American X-15 spent more time flying unpowered than under power. In the 1960s research was also done on unpowered lifting bodies and on the X-20 Dyna-Soar project, but although the X20 was cancelled, this research eventually led to the Space Shuttle.

On April 12, 1981, the Space Shuttle orbiter first flew. The Shuttle re-entered at Mach 25 at the end of each spaceflight, and landed entirely as a glider. As with Buran the shuttles represented by far the fastest type of aircraft of all time. The latest examples of rocket glider are the privately funded SpaceshipOne which is intended for sub-orbital flight and the XCOR EZ-Rocket which is being used to test engines.