Today’s Aeronautics

Aeronautical research has pro­gressed amazingly fast. Only seventy-three years after the Wright brothers’ historic first powered flight, Concorde passengers were relaxing in air-conditioned luxury, flying at twice the speed of sound nearly 11 miles (18 kilometers) above Earth.

There are now military air­craft that can fly without a pilot. Some of them are flown by a pilot in a cockpit on the ground, linked to the aircraft by radio. The latest unmanned air vehicles (UAVs), or drones, are able to fly themselves and carry out missions on their own without a person in control.

Подпись: SEE ALSO: • Aerodynamics • Airship • Balloon • Glider • Kite • Lift and Drag • Materials and Structures Подпись:Aeronautical research con­tinues in all developed countries today. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is known as the agency that oversees U. S. space explo­ration, but it is also a world leader in aeronautical design. Large aircraft manu­facturers and universities also carry out research in all aspects of aeronautics and aeronautical engineering.