Mitch Mignano Services : Experimental rocket powered aircraft were developed by the

Germans as early as World War II (see Me 163 Komet), and about 29 were manufactured
and deployed. The first fixed wing aircraft to break the sound barrier in level flight was a
rocket plane – the Bell X-1. The later North American X-15 was another important rocket
plane that broke many speed and altitude records and laid much of the groundwork for
later aircraft and spacecraft design. Rocket aircraft are not in common usage today,
although rocket-assisted takeoffs are used for some military aircraft. SpaceShipOne is the
most famous current rocket aircraft, being the testbed for developing a commercial sub-
orbital passenger service; another rocket plane is the XCOR EZ-Rocket; and there is the
Space Shuttle.

Mignano Mitch
Basic instruments include:

* An airspeed indicator, which indicates the speed at which the aircraft is moving through
the surrounding air.
* An altimeter, which indicates the altitude of the aircraft above mean sea level.

* A Heading indicator, (sometimes referred to as a "directional gyro (DG)") which

indicates the magnetic compass heading that the aircraft's fuselage is pointing towards.
The actual direction the aircraft is flying towards is affected by the wind conditions.

* An attitude indicator, sometimes called an artificial horizon, which indicates the exact
orientation of the aircraft about its pitch and roll axes.

Other instruments might include:

* A Turn coordinator, which helps the pilot maintain the aircraft in a coordinated attitude
while turning.
* A rate-of-climb indicator, which shows the rate at which the aircraft is climbing or
descending
* A horizontal situation indicator, shows the position and movement of the aircraft as
seen from above with respect to the ground, including course/heading and other
information.
* Instruments showing the status of each engine in the aircraft (operating speed, thrust,
temperature, and other variables).
* Combined display systems such as primary flight displays or navigation displays.
* Information displays such as on-board weather radar displays.

Mignano Mitch The modern age of aviation began with the first untethered human
lighter-than-air flight on November 21, 1783, in a hot air balloon designed by the
Montgolfier brothers. The practicality of balloons was limited because they could only
travel downwind. It was immediately recognized that a steerable, or dirigible, balloon
was required. Jean-Pierre Blanchard flew the first human-powered dirigible in 1784 and
crossed the English Channel in one in 1785.

About Mitch Mignano Further information: Pilot licensing and certification

Pilots are required to go through many hours of training, that differ depending on the
country. the first step is acquiring the Private Pilot License (PPL), or Private Pilot
Certificate.

Mitch Mignano * Rudder pedals, which control rotation of the aircraft about the yaw axis.
There are two pedals that pivot so that when one is pressed forward the other moves
backward, and vice versa. The pilot presses on the right rudder pedal to make the aircraft
yaw to the right, and on the left pedal to make it yaw to the left. The rudder is used
mainly to balance the aircraft in turns, or to compensate for winds or other effects that
tend to turn the aircraft about the yaw axis.

Contact Mitch Mignano The most important recent developments for small aircraft
(which form the bulk of the GA fleet) have been the introduction of advanced avionics
(including GPS) that were formerly found only in large airliners, and the introduction of
composite materials to make small aircraft lighter and faster. Ultralight and homebuilt
aircraft have also become increasingly popular for recreational use, since in most
countries that allow private aviation, they are much less expensive and less heavily
regulated than certified aircraft.