{"id":4942278,"date":"2026-07-11T15:55:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-11T13:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/?p=4942278"},"modified":"2026-07-11T16:36:37","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T14:36:37","slug":"miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/","title":{"rendered":"The Supersonic Jet Britain Threw Away"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.et_pb_title_container h1.entry-title { padding-top: 40px !important; }<\/style>\n<p>In the winter of 1946, Britain was perhaps six months away from becoming the first nation to fly faster than sound. In a guarded hangar sat a small, bullet-shaped jet called the Miles M.52, all but finished, its test pilot chosen, its supersonic trials pencilled in for that October. And then, with a single order, the government cancelled it.<\/p>\n<p>Eighteen months later it was an American, Chuck Yeager, who broke the sound barrier in the rocket-powered Bell X-1 &mdash; and the honour Britain had been chasing was gone for good. The story of the M.52 is one of dazzling engineering, official timidity, and one of the most bitterly debated decisions in British aviation history.<\/p>\n<p>What makes it sting is that the M.52 would almost certainly have worked. We know, because a model of it later did exactly what the aircraft was designed to do.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"background:#f5f5f5;border-radius:8px;padding:20px 22px;margin:24px 0;font-size:15px;line-height:1.8\"><strong style=\"font-size:17px\">Quick Facts<\/strong><br>\n&bull; <strong>Aircraft:<\/strong> Miles M.52 &mdash; Britain&rsquo;s secret supersonic research aircraft<br>\n&bull; <strong>Contract:<\/strong> December 1943, to Miles Aircraft; engine by Frank Whittle&rsquo;s Power Jets<br>\n&bull; <strong>Goal:<\/strong> the first piloted turbojet aircraft to reach 1,000 mph (about Mach 1.5)<br>\n&bull; <strong>Innovations:<\/strong> razor-thin biconvex wings; an all-moving tailplane; a jettisonable pressurised nose capsule<br>\n&bull; <strong>Cancelled:<\/strong> 12 February 1946, with the first aircraft all but complete<br>\n&bull; <strong>Instead:<\/strong> Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1 on 14 October 1947<br>\n&bull; <strong>Vindication:<\/strong> an unmanned rocket-powered M.52 scale model reached Mach 1.38 on 10 October 1948<\/div>\n\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">The 1,000 mph secret<\/h2>\n<p>In December 1943, at the height of the war, the Air Ministry handed a top-secret contract to Miles Aircraft &mdash; a small firm known for clever thinking &mdash; to build the world&rsquo;s first piloted aircraft capable of 1,000 mph. The engine would come from Frank Whittle&rsquo;s Power Jets. With almost no data on how anything behaved beyond the speed of sound, Miles turned to an unlikely source: wind-tunnel tests on rifle bullets and artillery shells. From that they shaped a needle-nosed aircraft with a razor-thin wing.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/40dG-6Fc4lo\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0;border-radius:8px\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">A decade ahead of its time<\/h2>\n<p>The M.52 bristled with ideas that would define supersonic flight for decades. Its wings were extraordinarily thin and sharp-edged. Its pilot sat in a jettisonable, pressurised nose cone that could be blown clear in an emergency. And most important of all, it had an <em>all-moving tailplane<\/em> &mdash; the entire horizontal tail pivoted as one surface, the single most important control breakthrough for staying flyable as an aircraft approaches the speed of sound. In the summer of 1944, controversially, all of this research was handed to the Americans.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-BIKL334gN4\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0;border-radius:8px\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">The cancellation that still baffles<\/h2>\n<p>By early 1946 the first M.52 was all but built and the Fleet Air Arm&rsquo;s Captain Eric &ldquo;Winkle&rdquo; Brown &mdash; the most experienced test pilot in Britain &mdash; had been named to fly it. Then, on 12 February 1946, Miles was ordered to stop. Officials cited cost and doubts that supersonic flight was even achievable soon. To the men who had built it, the decision was incomprehensible.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border-left:4px solid #5C91FF;padding:20px 22px;margin:18px 0 24px;border-radius:0 8px 8px 0;font-size:16px;line-height:1.7\"><em>&ldquo;Deep disappointment, total frustration, burning anger and heartfelt sympathy for other members of the team.&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>Captain Eric &ldquo;Winkle&rdquo; Brown<\/strong> &mdash; the M.52&rsquo;s test pilot, on learning of the cancellation<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border-left:4px solid #5C91FF;padding:20px 22px;margin:18px 0 24px;border-radius:0 8px 8px 0;font-size:16px;line-height:1.7\"><em>&ldquo;A decision which may well rank as one of the greatest tragedies of British aviation.&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>The History Press<\/strong> &mdash; on the cancellation of the M.52<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/1PC9iwhYMJk\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0;border-radius:8px\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">America breaks the barrier instead<\/h2>\n<p>The glory went across the Atlantic. On 14 October 1947, US Air Force Captain Chuck Yeager rode the rocket-powered Bell X-1 past Mach 1 &mdash; and, tellingly, the X-1 used an all-moving tailplane of the kind the M.52 had pioneered, after the Americans had been given Britain&rsquo;s research. How much that transfer mattered is still argued over, but the timing has never sat comfortably with British engineers.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" style=\"margin:0 0 24px\"><img data-opt-id=854992276  fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/07\/bell-x-1-in-flight.jpg\" alt=\"Bell X-1 in flight\" style=\"max-width:100%;height:auto;border-radius:6px\"><figcaption style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;margin-top:6px;font-style:italic\">The rocket-powered Bell X-1, in which Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in 1947. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">Proven right &mdash; too late<\/h2>\n<p>Britain did not entirely abandon the design. Engineers built unmanned, rocket-powered scale models of the M.52 and air-launched them from a Mosquito. On 10 October 1948, one of them held Mach 1.38 in stable, level flight &mdash; doing precisely what the full-sized aircraft had been built to do, and proving beyond doubt that the M.52 concept was sound. By then it was a footnote. The aircraft that could have made Britain first through the sound barrier had been scrapped, and its designers were left to wonder what might have been.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" style=\"margin:0 0 24px\"><img data-opt-id=67755896  fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/07\/miles-m52-rocket-model-rae.jpg\" alt=\"A Vickers-built Miles M.52 model used for supersonic testing\" style=\"max-width:100%;height:auto;border-radius:6px\"><figcaption style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;margin-top:6px;font-style:italic\">A rocket-powered M.52 scale model of the type that reached Mach 1.38 in 1948, vindicating the design. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;font-style:italic;margin-top:20px\">Sources: The History Press (&ldquo;Captain Eric &lsquo;Winkle&rsquo; Brown &amp; the gateway to supersonic flight&rdquo;); Wikipedia (Miles M.52; Bell X-1); The Engineer. The degree to which M.52 research aided the Bell X-1 remains a matter of historical debate.<\/p>\n<!-- mf-faq -->\n\n<div class=\"mf-faq-block\"><style>.mf-faq-block{margin:34px 0}.mf-faq-item:not([open]) .mf-faq-answer{display:none !important}.mf-faq-block h2.mf-faq-h{padding-top:22px;margin-bottom:14px}.mf-faq-item{border:1px solid #e2e8f5;border-radius:8px;margin:0 0 10px;background:#fff}.mf-faq-item summary{list-style:none;cursor:pointer;padding:15px 50px 15px 18px;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;position:relative;line-height:1.45;user-select:none}.mf-faq-item summary::-webkit-details-marker{display:none}.mf-faq-item summary::after{content:\"+\";position:absolute;right:18px;top:50%;transform:translateY(-50%);font-size:1.5em;font-weight:400;color:#5C91FF;line-height:1}.mf-faq-item[open] summary::after{content:\"\\2013\"}.mf-faq-item[open] summary{border-bottom:1px solid #eef1f8}.mf-faq-item summary:hover{background:#f5f8ff}.mf-faq-answer{padding:14px 18px;color:#333;line-height:1.6}.mf-faq-answer p{margin:0}.mf-faq-answer a{color:#5C91FF}<\/style><h2 class=\"mf-faq-h\">Related Questions<\/h2><details class=\"mf-faq-item\"><summary>What was the Miles M.52?<\/summary><div class=\"mf-faq-answer\"><p>The Miles M.52 was a top-secret British supersonic research aircraft, commissioned in December 1943 and designed to become the first piloted turbojet aircraft to reach 1,000 mph (about Mach 1.5). Powered by an engine from <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/the-engine-with-no-propeller-how-the-jet-age-was-born-in-secret\/\">Frank Whittle&#8217;s Power Jets<\/a>, it was all but complete when the British government cancelled it on 12 February 1946.<\/p><\/div><\/details><details class=\"mf-faq-item\"><summary>Why was the Miles M.52 cancelled?<\/summary><div class=\"mf-faq-answer\"><p>The M.52 was cancelled on 12 February 1946, with officials citing cost and doubts that supersonic flight was achievable soon &#8212; even though the first aircraft was nearly finished and its test pilot had been chosen. Like the later <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/the-tsr-2-the-best-british-aircraft-that-never-served\/\">TSR-2<\/a>, it remains one of the most bitterly debated cancellations in British aviation history.<\/p><\/div><\/details><details class=\"mf-faq-item\"><summary>Who broke the sound barrier first?<\/summary><div class=\"mf-faq-answer\"><p>US Air Force Captain Chuck Yeager was first to break the sound barrier, flying the rocket-powered Bell X-1 on 14 October 1947 &#8212; about 18 months after Britain cancelled the Miles M.52. Tellingly, the X-1 used an all-moving tailplane of the kind the M.52 had pioneered, after Britain handed its supersonic research to the Americans in 1944.<\/p><\/div><\/details><details class=\"mf-faq-item\"><summary>Could the Miles M.52 have broken the sound barrier?<\/summary><div class=\"mf-faq-answer\"><p>Almost certainly. On 10 October 1948, an unmanned rocket-powered scale model of the M.52 reached Mach 1.38 in stable flight &#8212; doing exactly what the full-size aircraft had been designed to do and vindicating the design two years after its cancellation.<\/p><\/div><\/details><details class=\"mf-faq-item\"><summary>What innovations did the Miles M.52 introduce?<\/summary><div class=\"mf-faq-answer\"><p>The M.52 featured razor-thin biconvex wings shaped using wind-tunnel data from rifle bullets and artillery shells, a jettisonable pressurised nose capsule that could be blown clear in an emergency, and an all-moving tailplane &#8212; the single most important control breakthrough for flying near the speed of sound.<\/p><\/div><\/details><details class=\"mf-faq-item\"><summary>What is an all-moving tailplane?<\/summary><div class=\"mf-faq-answer\"><p>An all-moving tailplane is a horizontal tail surface that pivots as one complete unit instead of using a small hinged elevator. It keeps an aircraft controllable as shock waves form near the speed of sound, where conventional elevators lose effectiveness. Pioneered on the Miles M.52, it was adopted by the Bell X-1 and became standard on supersonic aircraft.<\/p><\/div><\/details><details class=\"mf-faq-item\"><summary>Who was chosen to fly the Miles M.52?<\/summary><div class=\"mf-faq-answer\"><p>Captain Eric &#8220;Winkle&#8221; Brown of the Fleet Air Arm, Britain&#8217;s most experienced test pilot, was selected to fly the M.52&#8217;s supersonic trials. On learning of the cancellation he described &#8220;deep disappointment, total frustration, burning anger&#8221; among the team that had built it.<\/p><\/div><\/details><details class=\"mf-faq-item\"><summary>Did the Americans use British supersonic research?<\/summary><div class=\"mf-faq-answer\"><p>Yes. In the summer of 1944 Britain controversially handed its M.52 research to the United States. When the Bell X-1 broke the sound barrier in October 1947 it flew with an all-moving tailplane &#8212; the control breakthrough the M.52 had pioneered &#8212; while Britain&#8217;s own supersonic programme had been cancelled.<\/p><\/div><\/details><\/div>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"FAQPage\",\"mainEntity\":[{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What was the Miles M.52?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"The Miles M.52 was a top-secret British supersonic research aircraft, commissioned in December 1943 and designed to become the first piloted turbojet aircraft to reach 1,000 mph (about Mach 1.5). Powered by an engine from <a href=\\\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/the-engine-with-no-propeller-how-the-jet-age-was-born-in-secret\/\\\">Frank Whittle&#8217;s Power Jets<\/a>, it was all but complete when the British government cancelled it on 12 February 1946.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Why was the Miles M.52 cancelled?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"The M.52 was cancelled on 12 February 1946, with officials citing cost and doubts that supersonic flight was achievable soon &#8212; even though the first aircraft was nearly finished and its test pilot had been chosen. Like the later <a href=\\\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/the-tsr-2-the-best-british-aircraft-that-never-served\/\\\">TSR-2<\/a>, it remains one of the most bitterly debated cancellations in British aviation history.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Who broke the sound barrier first?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"US Air Force Captain Chuck Yeager was first to break the sound barrier, flying the rocket-powered Bell X-1 on 14 October 1947 &#8212; about 18 months after Britain cancelled the Miles M.52. Tellingly, the X-1 used an all-moving tailplane of the kind the M.52 had pioneered, after Britain handed its supersonic research to the Americans in 1944.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Could the Miles M.52 have broken the sound barrier?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Almost certainly. On 10 October 1948, an unmanned rocket-powered scale model of the M.52 reached Mach 1.38 in stable flight &#8212; doing exactly what the full-size aircraft had been designed to do and vindicating the design two years after its cancellation.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What innovations did the Miles M.52 introduce?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"The M.52 featured razor-thin biconvex wings shaped using wind-tunnel data from rifle bullets and artillery shells, a jettisonable pressurised nose capsule that could be blown clear in an emergency, and an all-moving tailplane &#8212; the single most important control breakthrough for flying near the speed of sound.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What is an all-moving tailplane?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"An all-moving tailplane is a horizontal tail surface that pivots as one complete unit instead of using a small hinged elevator. It keeps an aircraft controllable as shock waves form near the speed of sound, where conventional elevators lose effectiveness. Pioneered on the Miles M.52, it was adopted by the Bell X-1 and became standard on supersonic aircraft.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Who was chosen to fly the Miles M.52?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Captain Eric &#8220;Winkle&#8221; Brown of the Fleet Air Arm, Britain&#8217;s most experienced test pilot, was selected to fly the M.52&#8217;s supersonic trials. On learning of the cancellation he described &#8220;deep disappointment, total frustration, burning anger&#8221; among the team that had built it.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Did the Americans use British supersonic research?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Yes. In the summer of 1944 Britain controversially handed its M.52 research to the United States. When the Bell X-1 broke the sound barrier in October 1947 it flew with an all-moving tailplane &#8212; the control breakthrough the M.52 had pioneered &#8212; while Britain&#8217;s own supersonic programme had been cancelled.\"}}]}<\/script><!-- \/mf-faq -->\n\n<div style=\"background:#f0f4ff;border-left:4px solid #5C91FF;padding:16px 20px;margin:32px 0 8px;border-radius:0 8px 8px 0\"><p style=\"margin:0 0 8px;font-weight:600;color:#333\">Related Posts<\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/the-tsr-2-the-best-british-aircraft-that-never-served\/\">The TSR-2: The Best British Aircraft That Never Served<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/avro-arrow-cf-105-canada-mach-2-interceptor-black-friday-cancellation-nasa\/\">The Avro Arrow: The Superfighter Canada Built, Then Destroyed<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In 1946 Britain was months from breaking the sound barrier with the secret Miles M.52. Then it was cancelled \u2014 and America\u2019s Bell X-1 took the glory.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":4941982,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[666,664],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4942278","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-history-and-legends","category-military-aviation"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Miles M.52: The Supersonic Jet Britain Threw Away<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In 1946 Britain was months from breaking the sound barrier with the Miles M.52. Then it was cancelled \u2014 and the Bell X-1 took the record instead.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"it_IT\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Miles M.52: The Supersonic Jet Britain Threw Away\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In 1946 Britain was months from breaking the sound barrier with the Miles M.52. Then it was cancelled \u2014 and the Bell X-1 took the record instead.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Afterburner - MiGFlug&#039;s Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MiGFlug\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-11T13:55:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-07-11T14:36:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/07\/miles-m52-supersonic-featured.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"634\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"403\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Connor Kerr\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@migflug\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@migflug\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Connor Kerr\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Connor Kerr\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/bc7f2d09b1d7111c45fdb1335b8f2cf9\"},\"headline\":\"The Supersonic Jet Britain Threw Away\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-11T13:55:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-07-11T14:36:37+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1253,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\/\\/migflug.com\\/jetflights\\/wp-content\\/uploads\\/sites\\/4\\/2026\\/07\\/miles-m52-supersonic-featured.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"History &amp; Legends\",\"Military Aviation\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/\",\"name\":\"Miles M.52: The Supersonic Jet Britain Threw Away\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\/\\/migflug.com\\/jetflights\\/wp-content\\/uploads\\/sites\\/4\\/2026\\/07\\/miles-m52-supersonic-featured.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-11T13:55:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-07-11T14:36:37+00:00\",\"description\":\"In 1946 Britain was months from breaking the sound barrier with the Miles M.52. Then it was cancelled \u2014 and the Bell X-1 took the record instead.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\/\\/migflug.com\\/jetflights\\/wp-content\\/uploads\\/sites\\/4\\/2026\\/07\\/miles-m52-supersonic-featured.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\/\\/migflug.com\\/jetflights\\/wp-content\\/uploads\\/sites\\/4\\/2026\\/07\\/miles-m52-supersonic-featured.jpg\",\"width\":634,\"height\":403},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Startseite\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Supersonic Jet Britain Threw Away\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/\",\"name\":\"Afterburner - MiGFlug's Magazine\",\"description\":\"for those interested in flying military jets and aviation related  topics\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"MiGFlug GmbH\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\/\\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\\/cb:0e0_.b970\\/w:897\\/h:278\\/q:mauto\\/ig:avif\\/https:\\/\\/migflug.com\\/jetflights\\/wp-content\\/uploads\\/sites\\/4\\/2026\\/06\\/MIGFLUG_LOGO-no-background.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\/\\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\\/cb:0e0_.b970\\/w:897\\/h:278\\/q:mauto\\/ig:avif\\/https:\\/\\/migflug.com\\/jetflights\\/wp-content\\/uploads\\/sites\\/4\\/2026\\/06\\/MIGFLUG_LOGO-no-background.png\",\"width\":897,\"height\":278,\"caption\":\"MiGFlug GmbH\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/MiGFlug\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/migflug\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/migflug\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/user\\\/MiGFlug\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/company\\\/migflug.com\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pinterest.ch\\\/migflug\\\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/bc7f2d09b1d7111c45fdb1335b8f2cf9\",\"name\":\"Connor Kerr\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ed6d7365eb237a1c91b800bf8dfeb14b8e30a3712ed7fec9e18a70088fc423a9?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ed6d7365eb237a1c91b800bf8dfeb14b8e30a3712ed7fec9e18a70088fc423a9?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ed6d7365eb237a1c91b800bf8dfeb14b8e30a3712ed7fec9e18a70088fc423a9?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Connor Kerr\"},\"description\":\"Connor Kerr writes MiGFlug\u2019s long-form features \u2014 aviation history, how-it-works explainers and the stories behind the headlines.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/migflug.com\\\/jetflights\\\/it\\\/author\\\/connorkerr\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Miles M.52: The Supersonic Jet Britain Threw Away","description":"In 1946 Britain was months from breaking the sound barrier with the Miles M.52. Then it was cancelled \u2014 and the Bell X-1 took the record instead.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/","og_locale":"it_IT","og_type":"article","og_title":"Miles M.52: The Supersonic Jet Britain Threw Away","og_description":"In 1946 Britain was months from breaking the sound barrier with the Miles M.52. Then it was cancelled \u2014 and the Bell X-1 took the record instead.","og_url":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/","og_site_name":"Afterburner - MiGFlug's Magazine","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MiGFlug\/","article_published_time":"2026-07-11T13:55:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-07-11T14:36:37+00:00","og_image":[{"width":634,"height":403,"url":"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/07\/miles-m52-supersonic-featured.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Connor Kerr","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@migflug","twitter_site":"@migflug","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Connor Kerr","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/"},"author":{"name":"Connor Kerr","@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/#\/schema\/person\/bc7f2d09b1d7111c45fdb1335b8f2cf9"},"headline":"The Supersonic Jet Britain Threw Away","datePublished":"2026-07-11T13:55:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-07-11T14:36:37+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/"},"wordCount":1253,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/07\/miles-m52-supersonic-featured.jpg","articleSection":["History &amp; Legends","Military Aviation"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/","url":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/","name":"Miles M.52: The Supersonic Jet Britain Threw Away","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/07\/miles-m52-supersonic-featured.jpg","datePublished":"2026-07-11T13:55:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-07-11T14:36:37+00:00","description":"In 1946 Britain was months from breaking the sound barrier with the Miles M.52. Then it was cancelled \u2014 and the Bell X-1 took the record instead.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/07\/miles-m52-supersonic-featured.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/07\/miles-m52-supersonic-featured.jpg","width":634,"height":403},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/miles-m52-britain-supersonic-jet-cancelled-1946\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Startseite","item":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Supersonic Jet Britain Threw Away"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/#website","url":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/","name":"Afterburner - MiGFlug's Magazine","description":"Per chi \u00e8 interessato a pilotare aerei militari e argomenti correlati all&#039;aviazione.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/#organization","name":"MiGFlug GmbH","url":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:897\/h:278\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/06\/MIGFLUG_LOGO-no-background.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/ml5psubhxdln.i.optimole.com\/cb:0e0_.b970\/w:897\/h:278\/q:mauto\/ig:avif\/https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/06\/MIGFLUG_LOGO-no-background.png","width":897,"height":278,"caption":"MiGFlug GmbH"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MiGFlug\/","https:\/\/x.com\/migflug","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/migflug\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/MiGFlug","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/migflug.com\/","https:\/\/www.pinterest.ch\/migflug\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/#\/schema\/person\/bc7f2d09b1d7111c45fdb1335b8f2cf9","name":"Connor Kerr","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ed6d7365eb237a1c91b800bf8dfeb14b8e30a3712ed7fec9e18a70088fc423a9?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ed6d7365eb237a1c91b800bf8dfeb14b8e30a3712ed7fec9e18a70088fc423a9?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ed6d7365eb237a1c91b800bf8dfeb14b8e30a3712ed7fec9e18a70088fc423a9?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Connor Kerr"},"description":"Connor Kerr writes MiGFlug\u2019s long-form features \u2014 aviation history, how-it-works explainers and the stories behind the headlines.","url":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/author\/connorkerr\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4942278","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4942278"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4942278\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4983046,"href":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4942278\/revisions\/4983046"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4941982"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4942278"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4942278"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/jetflights\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4942278"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}