Editing Bell X-1 (section)

===Parallel development===

In 1942, the [[United Kingdom]]'s [[Ministry of Aviation]] began a top secret project with [[Miles Aircraft]] to develop the world's first aircraft capable of breaking the sound barrier. The project resulted in the design of the [[turbojet]]-powered [[Miles M.52]], with a maximum speed of {{convert|1,000|mph|kn km/h}} (over twice the existing [[Flight airspeed record|airspeed record]]) in level flight, and able to climb to an altitude of 36,000&nbsp;ft (11&nbsp;km) in 1 min and 30 sec. The fuselage was shaped like a bullet, it had thin wings and a slab tailplane for controlled flight at the speed of sound and beyond. Miles' chief aerodynamicist, Dennis Bancroft, was interviewed many years later in 1997 on his reason for needing an all-moving tailplane in his 1944 design.
:::DENNIS BANCROFT: We thought the ordinary controls wouldn't work above the speed of sound. So, we had to make an all-moving tail plane, because an ordinary elevator would literally not function at all. We would go up to the speed of sound, lose all air control, and the aircraft would crash.<ref name="Faster Than Sound.">Bancroft, Dennis. ''[[Secret History (TV series)|Secret History]]'': "Breaking the Sound Barrier" Channel 4, 7 July 1997. Re-packaged as ''NOVA'': [https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/transcripts/2412barrier.html "Faster Than Sound."], PBS, 14 October 1997. Retrieved: 26 April 2009.</ref>

In 1944, Miles was told to go ahead with the construction of three prototypes. In February 1946, with a first flight expected in the summer of 1946, the M52 was cancelled.<ref>Wood p.31</ref> In place of the manned full-scale M.52 it was decided to test 3/10 scale models of the aircraft, rocket propelled, dropped from an aircraft, and controlled by an autopilot. On the 10th of October 1948, a model achieved Mach 1.38 in level flight.
:::STACY KEACH (NARRATOR): One year after the X-1's historic flight, Britain broke the sound barrier with a one-third scale model of the M-52. Although unmanned and radio-controlled, it did finally vindicate the worthiness of its supersonic design.<ref name="Faster Than Sound."/>

The Bell XS-1 would have a conventional horizontal tail-plane but with trimming available on the stabilizer. It would be required for pitch control when a shockwave was preventing a deflected elevator from altering the pressure distribution and pitching force on the tailplane.

In September 1946, a DH 108 tail-less jet aircraft was practicing for an attempt on the world speed record when it experienced violent pitching oscillations at Mach 0.875 and broke up. The Bell XS-1 would have a conventional horizontal tail which provides pitch damping not present in a tail-less aircraft.