Electric plane: three new world records for Rolls Royce

Mitsubishi A6M, said” Zero “ Japanese single-seat fighter-bomber, the Mistubishi A6M was from 1939 and played a big role in the war against the United States. Dreaded by American pilots, this powerful single-engine propeller (more than 900 horsepower) is quite characteristic of the fighters of the Second World War. The “Zero” (for the Japanese), or “Zeke” (for the allies), had the advantage of exceptional handling and lightness, guaranteeing it a high speed (nearly 600 km / h). Its superiority waned, however, with the arrival of much more powerful American aircraft (the P47 exceeded 2,000 horsepower) and numerous. Vulnerable because devoid of armor in order to gain weight, it ended up suffering heavy losses. Zeros in flight are extremely rare today and always the result of reconstruction. The one that can be admired every year at the La Ferté-Alais meeting, near Paris, is in fact a modified North American T6, which was used in several cinema films. © Paul Richter, Wikimedia commons, CC by-sa 3.0

Chance Vought F4U Corsair This nearly four-ton empty single-seat US Army fighter-bomber was designed around a powerful 2,000-horsepower Pratt & Whitney engine. Built from 1942, it was first engaged in the Pacific War, during World War II. Recognizable by its W-shaped wing (which made it possible to shorten the legs of the landing gear), it was very fast for the time (over 600 km / h) and designed to land on aircraft carriers. The plane was then used by the French army in Indochina, from 1952. The “Corsair” also owes its fame to a television series, Les tête brûlées in French, broadcast in the 1970s. The actor Robert Conrad there played the role of Gregory “Pappy” Boyington, who actually existed. © Gerry Metzler, Flickr, CC by-sa 2.0

Messerschmitt Me 262 This short-lived, single-seat German fighter-bomber from the Second World War, which flew between 1944 and 1945, was the first military jet aircraft. The first tests took place in 1941 (with a piston engine) and in 1942 with two reactors. The speeds reached in operation exceeded 800 km / h. Faster than any other aircraft of the era, the Me 262 was very difficult to take down and effective on attack. However, its range was low, just over an hour, which gave a range of up to a thousand kilometers, so a radius of action well less than half in operations. Its reactors delivered low power at low speeds. Capricious, they reacted badly to go-arounds, sometimes by extinguishing themselves. The control of the skies by the Allied armies from the spring of 1944 made it difficult for the German army to operate the Me 262. © Noop1958, Wikimedia commons, DP

The Supermarine Spitfire and its Rolls-Royce engine With the Messerschmitt Bf 109, the Supermarine Spitfire is the other legendary fighter plane to have distinguished itself during the Second World War. It was mainly thanks to him that the British Royal Air Force was able to win the famous Battle of Britain. This monoplane with elliptical wings is characterized by its very aerodynamic profile which allowed it to reach 650 km / h thanks to its Rolls-Royce engine. The Supermarine Spitfire was produced in more than 20,300 copies, with variations used by several countries, including Egypt, France, Israel and Turkey. © Jez, CC by-nc 2.0

The Stampe SV-4, the airplane school biplane turned acrobat Imagine a driving school car with which drivers would become world rally champions. This is the story of the Stampe & Vertongen SV-4. Designed in Belgium in the 1930s by Jean Stampe and Alfred Renard, it was sold in a few copies in his native country and in the United Kingdom. About 850 were built from 1946, in France by the SNCAN (National company of aeronautical constructions of the North), and in Algeria by the AIA (Industrial workshops of aeronautics). The manoeuvrable and demonstrative biplane served as a starting school plane for future professional, civilian and military pilots. Their instructors invented a new aerobatics with him and the SV-4A was regularly world champion until the 1960s. Almost donated to French flying clubs, it trained thousands of amateur pilots. From the 1980s, it became a cult plane, lovingly restored, and some remanufactured it. Why does the Stampe still fly today? Because it’s a wonderful plane. © Le Vieux Biplan

The Fokker Dr.I, the plane of the Red Baron The Fokker Dr. I (or Dreidecker, which means “triplane” in German) is a German fighter plane which was famous during the First World War. Its structure with three superimposed short wings ensured excellent handling, especially for tight turns. The aircraft earned its nobility at the hands of Manfred von Richthofen. Author of 80 victorious fights, he was nicknamed the “Red Baron” because of the color of his apparatus. © Julian Herzog, CC by 3.0

The Spirit of St. Louis (Charles Lindbergh’s plane) and the Atlantic crossing On May 21, 1927, the Spirit of St. Louis piloted by American aviator Charles Lindbergh landed at Le Bourget airport (north-east of Paris) after having traveled through ‘a 5,808 kilometer ride from Roosevelt Airfield on Long Island (New York, United States). This first transatlantic crossing took 33 hours and 30 minutes under epic conditions. In order to lighten the aircraft as much as possible and carry as much fuel as possible, Charles Lindbergh had given up on carrying a parachute and a radio. The pilot conducted most of the instrument flight because the aircraft’s front window was blocked by a gas tank. © Wally Gobetz, CC by-nc 2.0

The Boeing B-29 Superfortress and the bombings Hiroshima and Nagasaki The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is a heavy bomber that was designed during World War II. Used by the US military from 1944 onwards, it was mainly used in the Pacific War for bombing campaigns on Korea and Japan. Most of all, the B-29 became infamous after being used to drop two atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. © Christopher Ebdon, CC by-nc 2.0

Photo of Concorde, technological excellence Fruit of a Franco-British collaboration between Sud-Aviation (now Aerospatiale) and the British Aircraft Corporation (now British Aerospace), the Concorde is, along with the Tupolev Tu-144 (developed in the USSR), the only supersonic aircraft to have been used to transport civilian passengers. Manufactured in 20 copies, this four-jet engine operated commercial flights from 1976 to 2003, mainly transatlantic routes. The Paris-New York flight operated by Air France lasted three and a half hours. Despite its sophistication and iconic image, the Concorde was a commercial failure because it was too expensive to maintain and too much fuel-intensive. The fatal blow to the career of this legendary aircraft came on July 25, 2000 when an Air France Concorde crashed two minutes after takeoff from Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle airport, killing 113 people. The last commercial flights were on May 31, 2003 for Air France and October 24, 2003 for British Airways. © Indianadinos, CC by-nc 2.0

The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, a formidable aircraft american spy The SR-71 Blackbird, from the Lockheed firm, is a supersonic aircraft used during the Cold War by the CIA, the US State Department, NASA and the US Navy to surveillance and photographic espionage missions. It was in service between 1968 and 1990. This futuristic fuselage plane is also very present in the collective imagination through numerous films, television series and video games which have borrowed its image. © mashleymorgan, CC by-nc 2.0

The Fouga Magister, the emblem of the Patrol de France The Fouga Magister is a jet aircraft designed in France in the 1950s. Recognizable by its V-shaped rear tail, it was first used for the training of air force pilots and as a liaison aircraft. Its capabilities also made it a formidable aerobatic aircraft which was used by the Patrouille de France from 1956 to 1980. Manufactured in a thousand examples, the Fouga Magister has been adopted by around twenty countries. © Peter Gronemann, CC by-nc 2.0

The Blériot XI and the first crossing of the Airplane handle Named after its illustrious designer (who was helped by Raymond Saulnier), the Blériot XI marked the beginnings of aviation in more ways than one. On July 25, 1909, he made the first crossing of the English Channel, covering 38 km at an average of 61.6 km / h thanks to his Anzani three-cylinder fan-shaped engine, developing 25 horsepower. The Blériot XI was also used by the French army during the First World War for reconnaissance missions. It can be admired at the Museum of Arts and Crafts in Paris and at the Air and Space Museum at Le Bourget. © Julian Herzog, CC by 3.0

The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21, an airplane with soviet reaction Commissioned in 1960, the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 is to date the most produced jet aircraft with 11,000 produced and just under 800 still in activity. An emblem of Soviet military power, the MiG-21 is considered to be a very efficient and agile aircraft that calls on the talent of pilots in the combat phases. © US Department of Defense, CC by-nc 2.0

The Falcon 7X, from Dassault Aviation , a presidential plane Manufactured by the French Dassault Aviation, the Falcon 7X is a three-jet business jet marketed since 2007. It can carry up to 16 people and cover a little over 11,000 kilometers (with 8 passengers) . It is the first aircraft in its category to be equipped with electric flight controls. In addition, its design was carried out entirely on a computer without any physical mock-up or prototype being manufactured. The Presidency of the French Republic uses two Falcon 7X. © Liam McManus, CC by-nc 2.0

The Antonov An-225, the most long and heaviest plane in the world The Antonov An-225 combines superlatives. This plane made in Ukraine at the time when the country was still attached to the USSR is quite simply the first carrier plane in length and mass. Equipped with six reactors and capable of carrying 250 tons of payload, it was initially designed to carry on its back the Russian space shuttle Buran, whose program was abandoned in 1988. This dealt a fatal blow to the fate of the Antonov An -225, which was only built in a single copy. © DAIHYUN JI, CC by-nc 2.0

Photo of the Airbus A380, the one of the largest civilian transport aircraft The Airbus A380 is a long-range airliner that is among the largest civilian transport aircraft. This double-decker quadjet can carry up to 853 passengers or 150 tonnes of cargo depending on its configuration. It has a range of 15,400 kilometers, which allows it to connect New York to Hong Kong nonstop. © Steevie, GFDL

The Airbus E-Fan, a 100% electric aircraft The E-Fan is a twin-engine electric aircraft whose development by Airbus Group Innovations began in 2011. It can fly for an hour at 160 km / h on average thanks to its lithium-ion batteries located in the wings and its two electric motors developing 60 kW. On July 10, 2015, the E-Fan crossed the English Channel from Lydd, England, to Calais. © Marc Schieferdecker, CC by-nc 2.0

Solar Impulse, the solar airplane that wants go around the world Solar Impulse is a solar airplane project initiated in 2003 by Swiss adventurer Bertrand Piccard and pilot André Borschberg, accompanied by the Federal Polytechnic School of Lausanne. This single-seater has a wingspan of 72 meters and four electric motors (13.5 kW each) powered by 11,628 photovoltaic cells. After a first test flight in 2010, the Solar Impulse 2 took off in March 2015 from Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) for a round-the-world flight with 13 stopovers. The adventure ended in July of the same year in Hawaii, where the aircraft had to remain immobilized after extensive damage to its batteries. © Matth1, GFDL

The Airbus A300-600ST or the “Beluga” aircraft It takes its nickname “Beluga” because of the shape of its cabin which immediately evokes the appearance of the cetacean of the same name. The A300-600ST is an aircraft produced in five copies by Airbus. It is used by the aircraft manufacturer to transport the bulky parts of the devices between its various European production sites. The Beluga can carry a payload of 50 tonnes. In its cargo hold, which measures 7.4 meters in diameter and 37.7 meters in length, it can, for example, carry two Airbus A330 wings or one Airbus A320 + fuselage. © Laurent ERRERA, CC by-sa 2.0

The SpaceLiner, a suborbital plane connecting the Australia and Europe in 90 minutes SpaceLiner is a reusable suborbital aircraft project on which the German Center for Aeronautics and Astronautics began work in 2005. This aircraft capable of carrying 50 passengers would take off vertically like the shuttles space. Once propelled by its launcher equipped with 9 cryogenic motors, the craft will be able to hover at very high speed, covering great distances. Theoretically, a SpaceLiner could connect Australia and the European continent in 90 minutes. However, this very ambitious project will not succeed, at best, until 2040-2050. © ToSch1983, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft und Raumfahrt, GFDL

The Canadair CL-415, a Water bomber with impressive capacity The Canadair CL-415 is a water bomber aircraft manufactured by the Canadian firm Bombardier Aerospace. Specialized in the fight against fires, it is used by many countries, including France where it is given the nickname of “Pelican”. This aircraft, known for its reliability, has two tanks that can store just over 6,000 liters of water. © Claudio, CC by-nc 2.0