No man was more synonymous with speed than world renowned pilot Chuck Yeager. Known as “the fastest man alive” through most of his life after breaking the sound barrier in 1947, Yeager died Monday at age 97.
Yeager, who was born in West Virginia in 1923, joined the Army Air Corp in 1941 at age 18. Yeager served as a pilot during World War II, was stationed in England and flew 64 missions during the war. He was shot down by German forces in 1944, but evaded capture with the help of the French underground.
After the war, Yeager became a flight instructor and a test pilot stationed at Ohio’s Wright Field.
In 1946, Yeager was selected to be the first to pilot the rocket-powered Bell X-1 and after several months of flights, Yeager pushed the experimental aircraft past the sound barrier with a record run over California’s Rogers Dry Lake on Oct. 14, 1947.
With the jet plane surpassing 700 mph, it made Yeager the first to travel faster than the speed of sound, earning him the title Fastest Man Alive.
Yeager commanded the 417th Fighter Bomber Squadron at Hahn Air Base in Germany and the 1st Fighter Day Squadron at George Air Force Base in California. In 1962, he became commandant of the Aerospace Research Pilot School. Thirty-seven graduates of the program participated in the U.S. space program.
Brigadier General Chuck Yeager retired from the Air Force in 1975. He flew 361 different types of military aircraft and accumulating more than 10,000 hours in flight. He was recognized by President Ronald Reagan with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1985.
In addition to his love of airplanes, Yeager was an automotive enthusiast and served as pace car driver for the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1986 and ’88.