I know for example the Concorde flew faster than sound, but I believe the options are much more limited now. Is it possible to be in a plane that breaks the sound barrier, without having access to flights in planes like the F16?
1 Answer
The only way that I know of (and I and @Stuart have both looked into this) is the MiG-29 flight. You need some training, but then there are a few options to do this with one (as a passenger - don't worry, you don't need to know how to fly it).
There are some sites on the net describing the options, but for example, flyajetfighter.com gives you several options, including:
3/ Stratospheric flight: reach the edge of space in the MiG-29. Fly up to 70,000 feet, twice as high as a normal airliner, and admire the curvature of the earth. The sky is pitch dark, and you are at twice the speed of sound. This is an extraordinary experience, and the only one so far to get you into the stratosphere.
Other than that, you might get 'lucky' in a regular passenger jet if something goes horribly wrong and you spiral into a spin and plummet towards the earth - but that's theoretical, and for obvious reasons, not something you want to experience.
EDIT
There are other options (just see FlyAJetFighter.com and click the drop down list - but the MiG seems to be one of the more feasible options - there are several online companies showing this option with a brief google search.
Another example - the MiG-21 is available in South Africa with a few companies, the example I've linked to has a full adventure deal for around US$10,000.
Another site - includes many options and a price list, ranging from US$3900 to US$22990, depending on the plane, but it's not clear which of those will be supersonic flights.
And it's worth noting that most of these companies (all of them if I'm not mistaken) won't take you if you have any medical conditions - ruling me out :(
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Excellent answer again!! But could you maybe elaborate on what makes a flight on this plane more feasible than any other fighter plane? Also, prices would be nice :) Commented Apr 6, 2013 at 22:10
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1This is going on my bucket list! Thanks Mark :) And there's plenty of other cool stuff to do down on the ground for you, as you seem to have figured out ;) Commented Apr 6, 2013 at 22:23
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Just to be nitpicky, a 'spin' won't get you through the speed of sound. A spin is a low speed 'manouver'. You are probably looking for a 'spiral dive' if a brief period of high speed flight followed by a messy death are your goals. Commented Apr 7, 2013 at 0:26
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"spiral into a spin then plummet" was I guess my way of saying "spiral dive" - guess I don't have the lingo down right :P Thanks! Commented Apr 7, 2013 at 0:57
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@MarkMayo "you spiral into a spin and plummet towards the earth" - this is probably more of a physics question, however is it really possible to break the sound barrier under such circumstances?– user5043Commented Apr 7, 2013 at 3:13