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This flight got up to 42,000 feet if you look at the elevation graph. I didn't know planes flew that high.

by aaronpk 15y ago

cryptoz 15y ago
> I didn't know planes flew that high. Well, it is a test flight of a brand-new plane. Also, some "planes" can go as high as they want in the atmosphere, even up to space (kinda).
- zackbloom 15y ago
  I don't know what you mean by "planes." All airfoil based aircraft have a limitation on how high they can fly before the air gets too thin for their wings to generate sufficient lift (known as their "operating ceiling"). The only exception to this I know of would be a craft with enough thrust to use power as the source of lift (like the space shuttle).
nknight 15y ago
My flights between Taiwan and California in the last ~18 months were usually around 40,000 feet give or take a bit in 747s and 777s.
harshreality 15y ago
That's high for a large body airliner, but some smaller business jets can go higher because they have better aerodynamics and engines. Service ceiling figures from wikipedia: Gulfstream 550 and Dassault Falcon 7x: 51k F14, F18, B52, and B-2: 50k F15, F16, F35, B-1B, Su-47: 60k F22, Typhoon, and PAK FA: 65k U-2: 70k SR71: 85k A380, A350: 43k A340, A330: 41k A320: 39k Boeing 787, 777: 43k Boeing 757, 727: 42k Boeing 747-400: 41k Boeing 737: 35k
- X-Istence 15y ago
  The 85k for the SR-71 is the unclassified information that has been made available. Rumor has it they hit 100k+ with the SR-71. Figures on actual ceiling for the SR-71 flights that were made have never been made public.
gvb 15y ago
<http://www.messybeast.com/dragonqueen/cockpit-chatter.htm&#62 http://www.messybeast.com/dragonqueen/cockpit-chatter.htm&#6...; (Flight level is x10000, so FL600 is 60,000 feet) SR-71 Blackbird was crossing the control-zone of London Control. Evidently the controller didn't know the service ceiling of this aircraft is around 30,000 metres (yes metres, not feet!). There are so many variations on this item that the original event has evidently become part of aviation folklore or joke-lore. Pilot: "Radar, Good Day, Airforce Blackbird, request FL 600(!)" Controller (amused): "Sir, if you can reach, you are cleared FL 600" Pilot: "US Air Force Blackbird, leaving FL 800, descending Level 600..."
- jonah 15y ago
  So many good stories about that bird. One of my favorites: https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups#!topic/rec.aviation.stories/ueI6JKeEomo https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups#!topic/rec.aviat... "There were a lot of things we couldn't do in an SR-71, but we were the fastest guys on the block and loved reminding our fellow aviators of this fact. People often asked us if, because of this fact, it was fun to fly the jet. Fun would not be the first word I would use to describe flying this plane. Intense, maybe. Even cerebral. But there was one day in our Sled experience when we would have to say that it was pure fun to be the fastest guys out there, at least for a moment. ..."

This flight got up to 42,000 feet if you look at the elevation graph. I didn't know planes flew that high.

by aaronpk 15y ago

This flight got up to 42,000 feet if you look at the elevation graph. I didn't know planes flew that high.

> I didn't know planes flew that high. Well, it is a test flight of a brand-new plane. Also, some "planes" can go as high as they want in the atmosphere, even up to space (kinda).

zackbloom 15y ago
I don't know what you mean by "planes." All airfoil based aircraft have a limitation on how high they can fly before the air gets too thin for their wings to generate sufficient lift (known as their "operating ceiling"). The only exception to this I know of would be a craft with enough thrust to use power as the source of lift (like the space shuttle).

nknight 15y ago

My flights between Taiwan and California in the last ~18 months were usually around 40,000 feet give or take a bit in 747s and 777s.

harshreality 15y ago

That's high for a large body airliner, but some smaller business jets can go higher because they have better aerodynamics and engines. Service ceiling figures from wikipedia: Gulfstream 550 and Dassault Falcon 7x: 51k F14, F18, B52, and B-2: 50k F15, F16, F35, B-1B, Su-47: 60k F22, Typhoon, and PAK FA: 65k U-2: 70k SR71: 85k A380, A350: 43k A340, A330: 41k A320: 39k Boeing 787, 777: 43k Boeing 757, 727: 42k Boeing 747-400: 41k Boeing 737: 35k

X-Istence 15y ago
The 85k for the SR-71 is the unclassified information that has been made available. Rumor has it they hit 100k+ with the SR-71. Figures on actual ceiling for the SR-71 flights that were made have never been made public.

gvb 15y ago

<http://www.messybeast.com/dragonqueen/cockpit-chatter.htm&#62 http://www.messybeast.com/dragonqueen/cockpit-chatter.htm&#6...; (Flight level is x10000, so FL600 is 60,000 feet) SR-71 Blackbird was crossing the control-zone of London Control. Evidently the controller didn't know the service ceiling of this aircraft is around 30,000 metres (yes metres, not feet!). There are so many variations on this item that the original event has evidently become part of aviation folklore or joke-lore. Pilot: "Radar, Good Day, Airforce Blackbird, request FL 600(!)" Controller (amused): "Sir, if you can reach, you are cleared FL 600" Pilot: "US Air Force Blackbird, leaving FL 800, descending Level 600..."

jonah 15y ago
So many good stories about that bird. One of my favorites: https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups#!topic/rec.aviation.stories/ueI6JKeEomo https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups#!topic/rec.aviat... "There were a lot of things we couldn't do in an SR-71, but we were the fastest guys on the block and loved reminding our fellow aviators of this fact. People often asked us if, because of this fact, it was fun to fly the jet. Fun would not be the first word I would use to describe flying this plane. Intense, maybe. Even cerebral. But there was one day in our Sled experience when we would have to say that it was pure fun to be the fastest guys out there, at least for a moment. ..."