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NAX

Rocket file · LV-209

North American X-15

North American Aviation · RETIRED

North American X-15 is a reusable launch vehicle built by North American Aviation. It stands 15.5 m tall, first flew on 8 June 1959. It has flown 13 times with 12 successes, a success rate of 92.3%. It has nothing on the Launch Library 2 schedule right now.

Specification

Vehicle spec sheet

ON FILE
Height15.5 m
Diameter6.6 m
Payload to LEONOT ON FILE
Payload to GTONOT ON FILE
Maiden flight8 June 1959
ReusableYes, stage recovery
Launch costNOT ON FILE
StatusRETIRED

As listed by Launch Library 2. The cost is Launch Library’s figure, not a quoted price. Figures for rockets outside the sixty most-flown were last read on 2026-11-05.

Flight record

Reliability

ON RECORD
Total flights13
Successful12
Failed1
Success rate92.3%
Landing attempts0
Landing successN/A
Scheduled0

About North American X-15

The North American X-15 was a hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft operated by the United States Air Force and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration as part of the X-plane series of experimental aircraft.

Upcoming flights

Manifest

EMPTY

North American X-15 is retired, and no flight is filed.

All upcoming launches

From NASA's public image library and Wikimedia Commons. Each photo shows the credit its licence asks for and links back to where it came from.

Cutaway drawing of the North American X-15
Cutaway drawing of the North American X-15NASA / AFRC · public domainNASA ↗
Three view art of the North American X-15
Three view art of the North American X-15NASA / AFRC · public domainNASA ↗
Cutaway drawing of the North American X-15
Cutaway drawing of the North American X-15NASA / AFRC · public domainNASA ↗

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Common questions

How many times has North American X-15 flown?
13 times, with 12 successes and 1 failures.
What is North American X-15's success rate?
92.3%. That's 12 successful flights out of 13 attempts.
How much can North American X-15 lift to orbit?
Launch Library 2 doesn't list a payload figure for North American X-15.
Is North American X-15 reusable?
Yes. Launch Library 2 lists North American X-15 as reusable. On most reusable rockets that's the first stage, not the whole rocket.