Is there a theoretical maximum possible speed an aircraft could travel on Earth due to air resistance?
A given aircraft has usually a maximum speed where it can fly without danger. It also depends on what part of the atmosphere we are talking about. 1) Here is an article about the problems of a jet aircraft at high speed: “the faster you go, the hotter the air gets (isentropic adiabatic pressure rise and temperature rise at all velocities that are greater than zero). That’s why supersonic aircraft have structural temperature limits. Just so. The pressure going up at the same time i handy, however. This behavior, BTW, for anyone monitoring, is also why something like a re-entering SPace Shuttle gets so hot – even when the air is so thin that Mach 20 or so has a EAS of 160 kts. (THe conditions pertaining when Columbia broke up). Although it’s commonly called “Friction Heating” friction doesn’t have much to do with it. Additionally, if you fly fast enough (M = ??, dependent on engine T4), then the aircraft’s motion through the air will heat the air to the same temperature as the engine T4,
