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Dec 8, 2020 08:46 Chuck Yeager, first pilot to break sound barrier, has died at age 97 The World War II Air Force fighter pilot ace showed he had the "right stuff" when in 1947 he became the. Sixty-five years later to the minute, on Oct. 14, 2012, Yeager commemorated the feat, flying in the back seat of an F-15 Eagle as it broke the sound barrier at more than 30,000 feet above Californias Mojave Desert. Among the flights he made after breaking the sound barrier was one on Dec. 12. [80] In 1986, he was invited to drive the Chevrolet Corvette pace car for the 70th running of the Indianapolis 500. This history making moment forever changed flight test as we know it in America. His Dutch-German family the surname was an anglicised version of Jger (hunter) had settled there in the 1800s. One of the world's most famous aviators has died: Chuck Yeager best known as the first to break the sound barrier died at the age of 97. Two of these victories were scored without firing a single shot: when he flew into firing position against a Messerschmitt Bf 109, the pilot of the aircraft panicked, breaking to port and colliding with his wingman. In recognition of his achievements and the outstanding performance ratings of those units, he was promoted to brigadier general in 1969 and inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973, retiring on March 1, 1975. Today, the plane Yeager first broke the sound barrier in, the X-1, hangs inside the air and space museum. He was, he said in his autobiography Yeager (1985, with Leo Janos), the guy who broke the sound barrier the kid who swam the Mud River with a swiped watermelon, or shot the head off a squirrel before breakfast. And he was also the guy who got patronised by officers who looked down their noses at my ways and accent or pegged him as dumb and down-home. It was a feat of considerable courage, as nobody was certain at the time whether an aircraft could survive the shockwaves of a sonic boom. Gen. Charles "Chuck" Yeager, the World War II fighter pilot ace and quintessential test pilot who showed he had the "right stuff" when in 1947 he became the first person. Controversy still reverberates around those days in October 1947. He ended up flying more than 360 types of aircraft and retired from the Air Force as a brigadier general. Yeager's most notable achievement was piloting the X-1 experimental rocket plane, in which he became the first human to fly faster than the speed of sound in 1947, shortly after the founding of the U.S. Air Force as a separate service. Yeagers pioneering and innovative spirit advanced Americas abilities in the sky and set our nations dreams soaring into the jet age and the space age. He possessed a natural coordination and aptitude for understanding an airplanes mechanical system along with coolness under pressure. He was 97. US test pilot Chuck Yeager, the first person to break the sound barrier, has died aged 97, his wife says. He left Muroc in 1954 and in that decade and the 1960s, he held commands in Germany, France, Spain and the US. He began his military time as an aircraft mechanic before attending flight school. And was just such a superb pilot.". Chuck Yeager with Glamorous Glennis, the plane in which he broke the sound barrier in 1947. During the ejection, the seat straps released normally, but the seat base slammed into Yeager, with the still-hot rocket motor breaking his helmet's plastic faceplate and causing his emergency oxygen supply to catch fire. [70] During the war, he flew around the western front in a helicopter documenting wreckages of Indian warplanes of Soviet origin which included Sukhoi Su-7s and MiG-21s; they were transported to the United States after the war for analysis. On Dec. 12, 1953, Chuck Yeager set two more altitude and speed records in the X-1A: 74,700 feet and Mach 2.44. In 1986, President Reagan appointed Yeager to the Rogers Commission that investigated the explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger. She was 82. After the war, General Yeager was assigned to Muroc Army Air Base in California, where hotshot pilots were testing jet prototypes. He was 97. Early life and education. For that same series, executive producer Rick Berman said that he envisaged the lead character, Captain Jonathan Archer, as being "halfway between Chuck Yeager and Han Solo. "Harmon Prizes go for 2 Air "Firsts"; Vertical-Flight Test Pilot and Airship Endurance Captain Are 1955 Winners, "The Wife Stuff: Feuds, Trials & Lawsuits, Bills, Bills, Bills, Chuck Yeager", "Republicans Hire Chuck Yeager For Political Ads", "Chuck Yeager is in love. An incredible life well lived, Americas greatest Pilot, & a legacy of strength, adventure, & patriotism will be remembered forever. Ive flown 341 types of military planes in every country in the world and logged about 18,000 hours, he said in an interview in the January 2009 issue of Mens Journal. Gen. Chuck Yeager, along with his remains, to his funeral in West . When Yeager left Hamlin, he was already known as a daredevil. [3] When he was five years old, his family moved to Hamlin, West Virginia. Chuck's devoted spouse died in 1990 after a long battle with cancer. Yeager also commanded Air Force fighter squadrons and wings, and the Aerospace Research Pilot School for military astronauts. By. (AP Photo/Douglas C . After serving as head of aerospace safety for the Air Force, he retired as a brigadier general in 1975. [88], In 1973, Yeager was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame, arguably aviation's highest honor. [75] Yeager was incensed over the incident and demanded U.S. He enlisted in the Army Air Forces out of high school in September 1941, becoming an airplane mechanic. He was 97. Born on February 13th, 1923, General Chuck Yeager with the Bell X-1 team, made world history breaking the sound barrier on Oct. 14th, 1947. Any airplane I name after you always brings me home. In a tweet from Yeager's . Yeager, from a small town in the hills of West Virginia, flew for more than 60 years, including piloting an X-15 to near 1,000 mph at Edwards in October 2002 at age 79. American World War II flying ace and test pilot, Yeager had not been in an airplane prior to January 1942, when his Engineering Officer invited him on a test flight after maintenance of an. After World War II, he became a test pilot beginning at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio. It was not until 10 June 1948 that the US finally announced its success, but Yeager was already soaring towards myth. Tim Stelloh is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital. [48] During 1952, he attended the Air Command and Staff College. Chuck Yeager was America's most decorated pilot, Chuck Yeager - who was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 - kept flying in his later years, 'Trump or bust' - grassroots Republicans are still loyal. He spent four years from 1962 as commandant of the USAFs aerospace research pilot school. Chuck (Charles Elwood) Yeager, aviator, born 23 February 1923; died 7 December 2020, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. There shouldve been a bump in the road, something to let you know that you had just punched a nice, clean hole through the sonic barrier. retaliation. GRASS VALLEY, Calif. (AP) Retired Air Force Brig. It's what happened moments later that cemented his legacy as a top test pilot. US Air Force / The LIFE Picture Collection via Getty Images file. But he became a fighter ace in World War II, shooting down five German planes in a single day and 13 over all. When he was asked to repeat the feat for photographers, Yeager replied: You should never strafe the same place twice cause the gunners will be waiting for you.. He was 97. (AP) - Retired Air Force Brig. Yeager had picked up the X-1 job after a civilian test pilot, Slick Goodlin, had asked for $150,000 to attempt to break the sound barrier. Yeagers feat was kept top secret for about a year when the world thought the British had broken the sound barrier first. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) . Thanks for contacting us. Chuck Yeager, a former U.S. Air Force officer who became the first pilot to break the speed of sound, died Monday. He was depicted breaking the sound barrier in the opening scene. December 8, 2020. He was also one of the first American pilots to fly a Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15, after its pilot, No Kum-sok, defected to South Korea. In 1947 Yeager was the first person to break the sound. XBB.1.5 Now Predominant COVID-19 Variant In Oregon. Chuck Yeager's death was announced on Twitter on Monday night by his second wife Victoria Yeager was the son of farmers from West Virginia and he became one of the world's finest fighter. Chuck Yeager, Test Pilot Who Broke the Sound Barrier, Is Dead at 97, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/07/us/chuck-yeager-dead.html. Marc Cook. [52] For this feat, Yeager was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) in 1954. His last supersonic flight, in 2012 commemorated the 65th anniversary of his breaking of the sound barrier. Why Alex Murdaugh was spared the death penalty, 'Trump or bust' - grassroots Republicans are still loyal. In this Tuesday, Oct. 14, 1997, file photo, Chuck Yeager explains it was simply his duty to fly the plane, during a news conference at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., after flying in an F-15 jet . Published: December 8, 2020. [65][67][71] Yeager also flew around in his Beechcraft Queen Air, a small passenger aircraft that was assigned to him by the Pentagon, picking up shot-down Indian fighter pilots. [63], Yeager was promoted to brigadier general and was assigned in July 1969 as the vice-commander of the Seventeenth Air Force. Legendary test pilot and World War II fighter ace Gen. Charles E. Yeager died Monday night, according to a tweet released by his wife Victoria. Yeager shot down 13 German planes on 64 missions during World War II, including five on a single mission. His death, at a hospital, was announced on his official Twitter account and confirmed by John Nicoletti, a family friend. Downed pilots were not generally put back into combat, but his pleas to see action again were granted. He was 97. Always.. He also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1985. Chuck Yeager was born in Myra, West Virginia, on February 13, 1923. Yeager was a rare aviator, someone who understood planes in ways that other pilots just don't. The pilots flew by day and caroused by night, piling into the Pancho Barnes bar. The first time I ever saw a jet, he said, I shot it down. It was a Messerschmitt Me 262, and he was the first in the 363rd to do so. The legend grew, culminating with secular canonisation in Tom Wolfes book The Right Stuff (1979), a romance on the birth of the US space programme, on Yeager himself, and even on Panchos (and its foul-mouthed female proprietor, Florence Pancho Barnes). A message posted to his Twitter account says, "Fr @VictoriaYeage11 It is w/ profound sorrow, I must tell you that my life love General Chuck Yeager passed just before 9pm ET. An incredible life well lived, America's greatest Pilot, & a legacy of strength, adventure, & patriotism will be remembered forever. His exploits were told in Tom Wolfes book The Right Stuff, and the 1983 film it inspired. Welcome to flightglobal.com. Chuck Yeager's history, legacy still live in Kern County and beyond. Yeager had been cheap, sneered some, and thus expendable. The locals in the nearby village of Yoxford, he recalled, resented having 7,000 Yanks descend on them, their pubs and their women, and were rude and nasty.. Brig. . You concentrate on results. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Woman kicked off flight for refusing to wear face mask, Canadian teacher with size-Z prosthetic breasts placed on paid leave, What's next for Buster Murdaugh after dad's murder conviction, life sentence, Sick trolls leak gruesome Maggie Murdaugh autopsy photo after it was accidentally shown on livestream, Madonna watches new boyfriend Joshua Poppers fight in New York City, Saving Private Ryan actor Tom Sizemore dead at 61 after brain aneurysm, How Ariana Madix discovered Tom Sandoval was cheating on her with Raquel Leviss, Max Scherzer's first look at the new pitch clock, Chris Rock Jokes About Watching Emancipation to See Will Smith Getting Whipped In Advance of Netflix Special: Report, Kellyanne Conway and George Conway to divorce. But you dont let that affect your job., The modest Yeager said in 1947 he could have gone even faster had the plane carried more fuel. When youre fooling around with something you dont know much about, there has to be apprehension. Sixty-five years later to the minute, on Oct. 14, 2012, Yeager commemorated the feat, flying in the back seat of an F-15 Eagle as it broke the sound barrier at more than 30,000 feet (9,144 meters . General Yeager's 14-minute sprint over the Mojave Desert on Oct. 14, 1947, is considered the most important airplane flight since Orville Wright swept over the sands of Kitty Hawk for 40 yards . "I was at the right place at the right time. Yeager died Monday, his wife, Victoria Yeager, said on his Twitter account. Yeagers feat was kept top secret for about a year when the world thought the British had broken the sound barrier first. "[116] Yeager and Glennis moved to Grass Valley, California, after his retirement from the Air Force in 1975. The airport that serves Charleston, West Virginia, is named after Chuck Yeager. Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer was Electronic Art's top-selling game for 1987. We've received your submission. It's not just flying the airplane, it's interpreting how the airplane is flying and understanding that. Yeager strikes a pose with Sam Shepard, who played him in the movie version of The Right Stuff. An incredible life well lived, America's greatest Pilot, & a legacy of strength, adventure, & patriotism will be remembered forever.". He also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1985. Yeager grew up in the mountains of West Virginia, an average student who never attended college. His wife,. In March 1944, when Yeager was based in England, he survived being shot down behind enemy lines in France. General Chuck Yeager, first man to break the sound barrier, passed away on Monday night at 97. Chuck Yeager, the first person to break the sound barrier and a subject of the book and film "The Right Stuff," has died.He was 97. As an evader, he received his choice of assignments and, because his new wife was pregnant, chose Wright Field to be near his home in West Virginia. He was 97. [23], Yeager demonstrated outstanding flying skills and combat leadership. "He could give extremely detailed reports that the engineers found extremely useful. GRASS VALLEY, Calif. (AP) Retired Air Force Brig. [23] In the meantime, Yeager shot down his second enemy aircraft, a German Junkers Ju 88 bomber, over the English Channel. Mr. Wolfe wrote about a nonchalance affected by pilots in the face of an emergency in a voice specifically Appalachian in origin, one that was first heard in military circles but ultimately emanated from the cockpits of commercial airliners. He married Victoria DAngelo in 2003. On the day of the flight, Yeager was in such pain that he could not seal the X-1's hatch by himself. Can Nigeria's election result be overturned? But he was hidden by members of the French underground, made it to neutral Spain by climbing the snowy Pyrenees, carrying a severely wounded flier with him, and returned to his base in England. Gen. Charles "Chuck' Yeager, passed away. He retired in 1976 as a brigadier-general his wife thought he should have made a full general. It's not, you know, you don't do it for the to get your damn picture on the front page of the newspaper. It's your job.". It might sound funny, but Ive never owned an airplane in my life. He was also a key supporter of the Marshall University's Society of Yeager Scholars, which was named in his honor. He started off as an aircraft mechanic and, despite becoming severely airsick during his first airplane ride, signed up for a program that allowed enlisted men to become pilots. hide caption. (Photo by Jason Merritt . He served, in 1986, on President Ronald Reagans Rogers commission into the space shuttle Challenger tragedy. Charles Elwood Yeager was born on Feb. 13, 1923, in Myra, W. Va., the second of five children of Albert and Susie Mae (Sizemore) Yeager. The young Yeager was a hunter with superb eyesight a sportsman, and not much of a scholar, but he did read Jack London. He was 97 when he passed away. Gen. Charles "Chuck" Yeager, the World War II fighter pilot ace and quintessential test pilot who became the first person to fly faster than sound in 1947, has . Master Sgt. His flight helmet even cracked the canopy, and a scratchy archive recording from the day preserves Yeager's voice as he wrestles back control of the aircraft: "Oh! On October 19, 2006, the state of West Virginia also honored Yeager with a marker along Corridor G (part of U.S. Highway 119) in his home Lincoln County, and also renamed part of the highway the Yeager Highway. 11 displaced after fire breaks out at Union City, Rare Sighting: Bald eagles spotted in Alameda County, Uvalde group helps those affected in Santa Rosa stabbing, 4 Fun Things: Heres whats happening in the Bay, Draymond Green spent his first NBA check here, 2 Montana SB jerseys sold at record-breaking prices, Get rid of Black History Month, Draymond Green says, Purdy elbow surgery could happen next week, Jake Paul takes first boxing defeat by split decision. Published: Dec. 7, 2020 at 7:56 PM PST. Video'Trump or bust' - grassroots Republicans are still loyal, Why Trudeau is facing calls for a public inquiry, The shocking legacy of the Dutch 'Hunger Winter'. My accomplishments as a test pilot tell more about luck, happenstance and a persons destiny. [35] Two nights before the scheduled date for the flight, Yeager broke two ribs when he fell from a horse. Renowned test pilot Chuck Yeager dies. Chuck Yeager, the first pilot to break the sound barrier in 1947, poses in front of the rocket-powered Bell X-IE plane that he flew at Edwards Air Force Base on Sept. 4, 1985. Cancelled in 1946, the M-52 would have been supersonic. In 2003 Yeager married Victoria DAngelo. his death was announced on his official Twitter account. What really strikes me looking over all those years is how lucky I was, how lucky, for example, to have been born in 1923 and not 1963 so that I came of age just as aviation itself was entering the modern era, Yeager said in a December 1985 speech at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. In 1950, General Yeagers X-1 plane, which he christened Glamorous Glennis, honoring his wife, went on display at the SmithsonianInstitution in Washington. On later visits, he often buzzed the town. [98] On August 25, 2009, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver announced that Yeager would be one of 13 California Hall of Fame inductees in The California Museum's yearlong exhibit. He finished the war with 11.5 official victories, including one of the first air-to-air victories over a jet fighter, a German Messerschmitt Me 262 that he shot down as it was on final approach for landing. [100], Army of the United States(Army Air Forces), Yeager named his plane after his wife, Glennis, as a good-luck charm: "You're my good-luck charm, hon. He was 97. That Tuesday morning, Yeager, inside the Glamorous Glennis, was dropped from the bomb-bay of a Boeing B29 Superfortress at 20,000ft, and took the X-1 to 42,000ft. In his autobiography, Yeager wrote that he knew the lake bed was unsuitable for landings after recent rains, but Armstrong insisted on flying out anyway. [83], On October 14, 1997, on the 50th anniversary of his historic flight past Mach 1, he flew a new Glamorous Glennis III, an F-15D Eagle, past Mach 1. Bob van der Linden of the National Air and Space Museum in Washington says Yeager stood out. Its your job.. US test pilot Chuck Yeager, the first person to break the sound barrier, has died aged 97, his wife says. He said, You dont concentrate on risks. Their job, flying a T-33, was to evaluate Smith Ranch Dry Lake in Nevada for use as an emergency landing site for the North American X-15. "And very few people do that, and he managed not only to escape. Glennis Dickhouse was pilot Chuck Yeager's wife of 45 years. Yeager had two brothers, Roy and Hal Jr., and two sisters, Doris Ann (accidentally killed at age two by six-year-old Roy playing with a firearm)[4][5][6] and Pansy Lee. Born in 1924, she married Chuck when she was just 21. In combat from February 1944, Yeager had accounted for an Me-109, over Berlin, by early March, when, on his eighth mission, he was shot down near Bordeaux. In 2016, when General Yeager was asked on Twitter what made him want to become a pilot, the reply was infused with cheeky levity: I was in maintenance, saw pilots had beautiful girls on their arms, didnt have dirty hands, so I applied.. US Air Force test pilot Chuck Yeager, stands beside the plane in which he broke the sound barrier, the Bell X-1, nicknamed Glamorous Glennis in honor of his wife, in California, circa March 1949. NASAs administrator, Jim Bridenstine, described General Yeagers death in a statement as a tremendous loss to our nation. The astronaut Scott Kelly, writing on Twitter, called him a true legend.. Later on, I realized that this mission had to end in a letdown because the real barrier wasnt in the sky but in our knowledge and experience of supersonic flight.. 1 of 5 Legendary airman Chuck Yeager the first pilot in history confirmed to break the sound barrier died Monday, his wife announced. That night, he said, his family ate the goose for dinner. After World War II, he became a test pilot beginning at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio. On October 12, 1944, he attained "ace in a day" status, shooting down five enemy aircraft in one mission. Yeager never forgot his roots and West Virginia named bridges, schools and Charlestons airport after him. US Air Force officer and test pilot Chuck Yeager, known as "the fastest man alive," has died at the age of 97.