Loudest plane on Earth

I was privileged to experience a Vulcan at a flying day at the Shuttleworth Collection. After a few deafening passes at low throttle, the pilot bought it in gear and flaps down , then it was gear up, light all four Olympus and then he stood the enormous aircraft on its tail and shot vertically up. The ground shook, and you could feel the roar in your lungs. All you could hear when he was gone were hundreds of car alarms from the car park, dogs barking and children screaming .... it still brings me out in goosebumps thinking about it 30 years later!

I once saw a Vulcan at an airshow, and the guy who posted the video is right... it was truly deafening. It is a bone-rattling roar that seems to go right through your body. There is simply no way that a computer video can do justice to the sheer, brutal loudness of this airplane... you really have to be there in person to properly appreciate it!

Quote: "She climbs like a homesick angel.."

There are military aircraft and there is the Vulcan.

All those post ww2 and cold war british jets were just plain beautiful, and seeing any of them still flying (meteor, sea vixen, buccaneer, and this gorgeous vulcan) is almost like watching any of Marilyn's films, seductive and capable with a sense of humor rarely found in a survivor's heart.

Wow, What a beautiful aircraft. And that takeoff too! Just wow. You Brits sure do know how to build a plane.

Sounds exactly like those modern day hand driers they have in public restrooms nowadays.

About 40 years ago I was working on my father's farm on a hot summer day on my own in a field and suddenly a very large shadow spread all around me. I looked up straight into the bomb bay of a Vulcan. It had taken off from the nearby airfield and I never heard it coming. It was very very lowindeed but when it passed me the shock wave of the sound (not the blast of the engines) knocked me off my feet. Then a few years ago I heard a plane in the sky and I instantly knew it was the restored Vulcan on one the last flights. That sound you never forget. Concorde flying down the Thames over my house in London was also incredibly impressive.

I was at Hong Kong Kai Tak in the late 90's when a Concorde took off, to say that the windows were rattling and it was loud is an understatement. The people in the terminal were split into two factions, some running away and others running to see what the source of the noise was (I was the latter) I was thrilled to see it climbing steeply into the sky to a round of applause from the people in the Terminal building !

NSFW in Argentina

Humble respect from France , British engineering .

I witnessed a 4 Vulcan scramble at a base near Doncaster back in the late 70s and it was incredible.  We were almost blown away with the blast and the heat as they passed us.  This is my all time favourite flying machine and it should be preserved for future generations to experience.  This is one of the most important aircraft in the history of aviation and it should be commemorated.

I remember going to a display at Bassingbourn many, many years ago when a Vulcan came over going for "the quietest aircraft of the day" award and you could hardly hear it. On its second pass it came over with everything flat out and the ground shook as it climbed into the clouds. Absolutely amazing.

I saw and heard these in person at airshows at RAF Bentwaters around 1964-65. I was a kid and I’ll never forget how grand and noisy they were to the point of 54 years later I still remember.

Back in the day I lived in the landing pattern ( about 20 miles out) for Dulles airport in (near) Washington DC. I guess you never heard the Concorde fly over? You could set your watch by it. 1:05 pm every afternoon. 20 miles out at 15k feet and it sounded like it was coming down the street! I've been a ramp rat for over 45 years and NEVER heard anythong that comes close.

I know one that may be louder the REPUBLIC XF-84H "Thunderscreech"

XB-70.  With 6 afterburning YJ-93 straight turbojets rated at 30,000 lbs thrust each.  Top that.  From what I hear, it could be heard taking off 50 miles away, and with 180,000 pounds of TO thrust, I can believe it.

The loudest I ever heard was the twice weekly Blackbird SR-71 leaving RAF Mildenhall between 2 and 3a.m. Went for the yearly airshow in the eighties, but stayed long enough to see one or two take-offs of the Blackbird, on take-off at V1(rotation of aircraft onto rear wheels) the engines momentarily scorch the runway sending earthquake-like vibrations through the ground and up the legs of anyone stood on the ground, followed by a similer sensation in the chest as the aircraft gained height. What a adrenaline rush.

My dad worked on these so I grew up hearing them 24/7. Never thought I would miss them but I do.

I remember vividly the last full 1 Gp Survival Scramble from Waddington and Scampton, in about 1982/3.  On a perfectly clear day, both Wings launched everything they had, and Lincolnshire vibrated for about 10 minutes.  It was simply awesome, as the dispersal 'fan tracks', at 5º spacing, filled the clear sky with smoke trails as they climbed out. No re-heat like Concorde, of course, just raw Olympus power on full throttle ... lots of them!  :)