Supersonic car Thrust SSC: 50 years and 1 day until the record

The time period is indicated reliably. For the first time, humanity surpassed the speed of sound on October 14, 1947. But the event took place in the sky, on an experimental by plane US Air Force. The Bell X-1 supersonic aircraft with a rocket engine was piloted by American World War II ace, test pilot Captain Charles Yeager.


It took the developers of wheeled controlled vehicles half a century and one day to car crossed the sound barrier. The goal was not to mass-produce such fast cars: the road infrastructure does not allow it, especially in cities.

But the engineering industry is striving for a high-tech, low-carbon, energy-efficient future. The creation of supersonic cars is intended to advance science and technology, to bring the future closer.

First Steps: Budweiser Rocket 1979

I wish the Americans were the first to exceed the speed of sound. Maybe that's what happened - once and briefly. But the International Federations, motorcycle and automobile, refused to register the record and award the Budweiser Rocket the honorary title.


According to the official version, the bolide flew at a speed of 1177,9 km/h. But the US Air Force radars and onboard accelerometer recorded 1,01 Mach (one Mach is 1225,1 km/h). The speed of sound in the atmosphere is not an absolute value. It depends on the condition, temperature and pressure of the air.

But the point is not what the instruments at the California salt lake showed. The main thing is that only one of the observers heard a "sonic boom." This phenomenon sounds like an explosion or a clap of thunder to the human ear. It is associated with the enormous energy and shock waves that occur when a body overcomes the speed of sound.


No one present, you know, heard the "sonic boom." Not even General Charles Yeager. The same one who, as captain, sat at the controls of the world's first supersonic aircraft, the Bell X-1. The representatives of the Guinness Book of Records were also "deaf."

Details about the Budweiser Rocket model

Stan Barrett, a Hollywood stuntman and racing driver, piloted the Rocket. During the race, the monstrous vertical overloads damaged the test driver's spine. The negative decision of the judging committee was even more offensive.


Stan's projectile really did look like a rocket. The difference was in the three all-metal "earth" wheels. One front (immediately behind it were the tanks with fuel and oxidizer) and two rear. The fuselage length was 12,1 m.

At first, the car was equipped with one liquid rocket engine (LRE). But it, working on a pair of kerosene and oxygen, gave only 1123 km/h of speed. Then the developers bought a solid-fuel medium-range air-to-air missile from the Air Force.

When the car reached 600 km/h, Stan Barrett turned on the rocket. This happened during several test runs and the final run. Experts say that the car simply did not have enough fuel for officials to register that it had exceeded the speed of sound.


The project was financed by film director Hal Needham. The car cost the sponsor $900. The engineering team was led by William Frederick. The original Budweiser Rocket is kept in the Smithsonian Institution in the United States.

Next attempt: 2 Thrust1983 car

Then the British took over. John Ackroyd led the development of the supersonic car. The second inspirer and, later, the pilot was Richard Noble. They started with a budget of 175 pounds sterling. Then investors appeared, wanting to get some PR on the new product, and they brought 10 million pounds sterling into the company's treasury.

The British built a design with a total weight of 10,6 tons. Geometrically, the car did not resemble the Budweiser Rocket: perhaps, the same all-metal wheels. However, the bolide can hardly be called a car in the generally accepted sense. But the beauty and proportionality of the vehicle are undeniable.


A turbojet engine was chosen as the power plant. An attempt to reach the sound bar took place in the Black Rock Desert, Nevada. Alas! The only thing that Trust2 managed in 1983 was to break the 13-year-old world speed record: the bolide reached 1019,468 km/h. It was 169 km/h short of the speed of sound.

Let us recall: the first car that was really capable of leaving behind 1000 km in an hour is considered to be the "Blue Flame". The car was born in the depths of the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1970.

Sound Barrier Breaker: Thrust SSC

Richard Noble, dissatisfied with the results of 1983, continued his research. He worked with brilliant minds: Glenn Bowsher, Ron Aers, Jeremy Bliss.

This time, the aircraft was equipped with two turbofan engines with forced thrust. Rolls-Royce Spey units were used at that time in British military aircraft. In total, the engines generated 110 hp.


That is, the British have practically built a small land-based fighter. Indeed, if ordinary cars have a wheel drive, then the Thrust SSC uses jet acceleration technologies.

Dimensions of the device:

✅ Length - 16 500 mm
✅ Width - 3700 mm
✅ Height - 2100 mm

There was a 10 m gap between the front and rear pair of wheels. The SSC (Super Sony Car) weighed 10 kg. The car carried 500 liters of fuel. This amount, according to the designers' calculations, should be enough to exceed the speed of sound and brake. After all, the engine burned 1125 liters per second.


The ground clearance was 10 cm, which had a very unpleasant effect on the "fifth point", according to the pilot. By the way, Andrew Green, a pilot of the Royal Air Force of Great Britain, was holding the steering wheel this time. A real hero. After all, no one guaranteed that the car would not be torn apart by overloads, although it was built from titanium and carbon fiber.

record

The candidate for the title of the first supersonic car in the history of civilization was ready for testing in 1996. The testing took place in the Al-Jafr desert in southern Jordan. Then the sports car was taken to Nevada, USA.

A 21 km long track was prepared at the bottom of the dried-up salt lake Black Rock. Here, on October 15, 1997, the triumphant Thrust SSC race took place. Exactly 50 years and 1 day had passed since the Bell X-1 airplane conquered the speed of sound in the sky.


The event was covered by radio, television and print media correspondents. Crowds of curious people were present. From the moment of takeoff, the machine was accompanied by a terrible roar and noise. A plume of dust swirled behind its tail. The pilot reached a speed of 1000 km/h in 16 seconds. Another 14 seconds later, the long-awaited "sonic boom" was heard. It rolled loudly across the desert, and the echo reached the far corners of planet Earth.

The action took half a minute. The enthusiastic public could not get close to the car for a long time: the body panels were heated by air friction to 127°C. The observers were unanimous: "Trust SSC" is a supersonic car. The speedometer needle stopped at 1228,92 km/h. And the scale, by the way, was marked up to 1600 km/h. Just in case.

"Trust the corrected"

The victory was registered by Guinness and other books. Thrust SSC was called "the fastest land-based aircraft". But will it be without legal red tape?

In 2003, an unmanned rail sled was built at the American Holloman Air Force Base. The design was a platform with a rocket engine, without wheels, sliding along rail tracks. Quite "ground-based". The rocket sled accelerated to 10 km/h. How many Machs is that?


The military at Holloman did not dispute our hero's title as the first supersonic vehicle. But they sought clarification that the Thrust SSC was a "wheeled controlled vehicle."

Well, the corrections have been made. It is important that no manufacturer has yet built a supersonic car. But, they say, Richard Noble is restless. He already showed a new thing at the 2010 air show. He promised to equip it with three engines: a hybrid rocket, a jet and an 800-horsepower gasoline engine. There, they say, the speedometer was marked up to 1609 km/h. But something went wrong…