It’s
National Aviation Day! OSG and its products support the continuous advancements
being made in the aviation industry. So let’s celebrate the day by learning new
facts about aviation!
1. The Lockheed SR-71
Blackbird currently holds the record for the fastest manned aircraft at
approximately Mach 3.3 in 1976, but the aircraft was decommissioned in 1998.
Standard evasive action for a missile attack was to accelerate until it out ran
the missile.
2. The Boeing 787
Dreamliner is comprised of more than 50% composite materials and is over 20%
more fuel efficient than comparable models of previous design.
3. Boeing’s Everett
facility is the largest building in the world by square volume at over
472,000,000 ftᶟ and covers just almost 100 acres.
4. The McDonald Douglas
F15 Eagle has over 100 aerial victories and 0 losses in air to air combat. It
is currently expected to serve in the U.S. Air Force past 2025.
5. The commercial
aerospace market is expected to grow from 20,000 aircraft to over 42,000 in the
next 20 years, with a need for 36,000 new planes due to demand growth and
decommissioned airplanes. This is over a $5 Trillion market.
6. Retired Air Force
Brigadier General, Chuck Yeager, is credited as the first person to fly a plane
past the speed of sound in 1947 on the experimental Bell X-1.
7.
Ohio
and North Carolina both claim to be the place where aviation first began. Ohio
state license plates read, “Birthplace of Aviation,” and the North Carolina’s
reads, “First in Flight.” The Wright brothers dreamed up the idea of the
airplane in their hometown of Dayton, Ohio, but Kitty Hawk, North Carolina was
where they had their first controlled powered airplane flights.
Sources:
http://www.boeing.com/commercial/787/#/design-highlights/visionary-design/composites/advanced-composite-use/
http://www.boeing.com/assets/pdf/commercial/cmo/pdf/Boeing_Current_Market_Outlook_2014.pdf