The Walter HWK 109-509 powered the first piloted aircraft of any type to exceed how many MPH in level flight?
Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet The Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet was a German rocket-powered fighter aircraft. Designed by Alexander Lippisch, it is the only rocket-powered fighter aircraft ever to have been operational and the first piloted aircraft of any type to exceed 1000 km/h (621 mph) in level flight. Its design was revolutionary and its performance unprecedented. German test pilot Heini Dittmar in early July 1944 reached 1130 km/h , an unofficial flight airspeed record unmatched by turbojet-powered aircraft for almost a decade. Over 300 aircraft were built, but the Komet proved ineffective in its dedicated role as an interceptor aircraft and was responsible for the destruction of only about nine to eighteen Allied aircraft against ten losses. Aside from combat losses many pilots were killed during testing and training.
Cessna CH-1 Skyhook The Cessna CH-1 Skyhook is the only helicopter ever built by the Cessna Aircraft Company. It was the first helicopter to land on the summit of Pike's Peak and the last piston-engined helicopter to set the helicopter altitude record. The CH-1 had a single, two-bladed main rotor, and a front-mounted reciprocating engine which gave the aircraft a stable center-of-gravity (CG). Its semi-monocoque airframe greatly resembles its light airplane siblings built by Cessna. The CH-1 was named Skyhook for the civil market, similar to the marketing names used in the Cessna single engine airplane line, such as Skyhawk, Skylane and Skywagon. The United States Army designated the CH-1C as the YH-41 Seneca. While the CH-1 achieved several helicopter "firsts" and set a world record, it never became a commercial or military success.