Dec. 8, 2020 – Chuck Yeager (1923-2020) was revered among civilian and military pilots alike. He had keen vision, skill and confidence. He was an ace pilot during World War II (1939-1945), flying the P-51 Mustang. The fampusTuskegee Airmen also flew the P-51 Mustang.
On Oct. 14, 1947 after World War II (1939-1945), Yeager was the first pilot to break the sound barrier flying 700 miles per hour at 43,000 feet. Yeager passed away yesterday on the Pearl Harbor anniversary. He was 97.
Yeager broke the sound barrier in 1947 flying over the Mojave Desert in the Bell X-1 test airplane. That plane can be viewed at Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum. A few days before the historic flight, he and his wife were riding horses. He fell off his horse and broke two ribs. Only his wife and one other person knew he broke the sound barrier with broken ribs!
Video from the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force
Battle tested at a young age
Yeager enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1941 just before the attack on Pearl Harbor. He was 18. He worked first as an airplane mechanic. That skill set would serve him well during his long career in the U.S. Air Force (USAF).
On March 5, 1944 while Yeager was flying a mission over occupied France during World War II, his plane was shot down. He found safety with the French Resistance (the Maquis). The Maquis was a band of French civilians who protected Allied soldiers. They also took aggressive action to slow down or incapacitate German soldiers occupying France during the war.
After hiding for about two weeks, the Maquis drove Yeager to the border with Spain. From there, Yeager and other Allied soldiers had to hike across the Pyrenees Mountains to Spain. Spain was neutral during World War II. But there were plenty of German soldiers there dressed in plain clothes. Yeager was not out of danger until he was able to return to England where he was stationed with the Eighth Air Force under the command of Gen. James “Jimmy” Doolittle.
Pilots shot down were usually not permitted to return to the battlefield. Yeager sent a petition to Gen. Eisenhower to allow him to return to air combat. Eisenhower was the Supreme Allied Commander. Eisenhower approved the petition. Yeager continued to fly until Jan. 15, 1945, his final WWII flight.
Yeager remained in the Air Force achieving the rank of Brigadier General. He flew combat missions during the Vietnam War. He retired from the military in 1975.
He is a central figure in the book, The Right Stuff, written in 1979 by Tom Wolfe. The book was made into a movie with the same name in 1983. It received a number of Oscar nominations. The book and movie focus on the early test pilots and astronauts after World War II as the United States and the Soviet Union engaged in a race to space.
re-enacted his 1947 flight from Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, this time as the co-pilot.
(Photo: U.S. Air Force)
NASA Statement
The following is a statement from NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine on the passing of Gen. Chuck Yeager:
“Today’s passing of Gen. Chuck Yeager is a tremendous loss to our nation. Gen. Yeager’s pioneering and innovative spirit advanced America’s abilities in the sky and set our nation’s dreams soaring into the jet age and the space age. He said, ‘You don’t concentrate on risks. You concentrate on results. No risk is too great to prevent the necessary job from getting done.’
“Among many firsts in more than 60 years in aviation, Chuck was the first man to fly at the speed of sound, and his achievements rival any of our greatest firsts in space. Not content to rest on his laurels, he went on to break his own record and travel at Mach 2.44. But even before that he was serving his country heroically in World War II. Long after he became a legend in his own time, he continued to serve his country through the military and later in his ongoing work to test new aircraft.
“Chuck’s bravery and accomplishments are a testament to the enduring strength that made him a true American original, and NASA’s Aeronautics work owes much to his brilliant contributions to aerospace science. As a young naval aviator, I was one of many around the world who looked up to Chuck Yeager and his amazing feats as a test pilot. His path blazed a trail for anyone who wanted to push the limits of human potential, and his achievements will guide us for generations to come.”