Comments on: Chuck Yeager

By: Nick DonVito

Nick DonVito — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 05:08:11 +0000

My Father Vito A. DonVito worked at Bell Aircraft and helped build the X1a and x2. The men that worked on those planes were given beautiful models as a rememberance and I played with dad’s until they were broken. Wish I had them now. Nick

By: Paul Snow

Paul Snow — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 01:57:29 +0000

Happy birthday, Chuck!

By: honorabili

honorabili — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 05:29:42 +0000

He is a legendary aviator!

By: mark edwards

mark edwards — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 15:19:46 +0000

thank you mr.yeager

By: Don Struke

Don Struke — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 05:14:52 +0000

AL (Sept 4 post) in fact is correct. Civilian pilot George Welch is generally known to have broken the sound barrier on 1 October 1947 in an XP-86 Sabre (F-86 prototype), which was two weeks before Yeager’s flight. HOWEVER it was in a dive. Yeager gets the credit for breaking Mach One in level flight (often this level flight distinction is not included in Yeager accounts). What’s more, just 30 minutes before Yeager’s 14 October flight, Welch did it again, in a dive. I’ve read that the AF succeeded in having the Welch flights’ info squelched so that it could claim the record by an AF pilot. The XP-86 officially achieved supersonic speed on 26 April 1948. Welch was one of the few Army Air Force fighter pilots to get airborne at Pearl Harbor on December 7, downing or damaging at least four Japanese planes. He was a 16-kill ace by the end of WWII and in Korea as a civilian instructor he unofficially (of course) shot down several MiG-15s. He died in 1954 when his F-100A Super Sabre came apart during a Mach 1.55 pullout. Chuck Yeager was flying the chase plane.

By: Al

Al — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 16:02:03 +0000

Actually, the official history is wrong. Another pilot heard that Chuck was going to be doing this, and before that date, he took an F-86 up to high altitude, went into a dive, and broke the sound barrier. Without help from a bomber, and with no dangerous rocket fuel. It’s documented, but by now the records recorded by this F-86 and personnel on the ground, has probably been “retired”. But the men who knew this are still alive, some of them.

By: babyking101

babyking101 — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 15:05:46 +0000

OMG thank you so much chuck! my hero <333 you are the reason I wake up in the morning!

By: Tom Lund

Tom Lund — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 15:50:23 +0000

As a young sailor stationed in Washington D.C. in the early 1970′s, I frequently visited the National Air & Space Museum before the current facility was built. To see both Chuck Yeager’s “Glamourous Glennis” and Charles Lindbergh’s “Spirit of St. Louis” both hanging from the ceiling was always a special treat and thrill.

“Lucky Lindy” helped to make commercial aviation and transcontinental air travel possible, and as important as that was, Chuck Yeager did something even greater – he put us on the road to space travel. Way to go Chuck!!!!

By: Bruce English

Bruce English — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 21:28:34 +0000

Such courage; what an incredible chapter in flight, or should one say early rocket travel?

We were in the The National Air and Space Museum this January. I was awe struck to see the craft on display. I was surprised to see it is orange in colour. Is there a particular reason for this? Perhaps for search and rescue purposes?

Thanks for posting the anniversary.
Regards, Bruce

By: mckenzie2178

mckenzie2178 — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 18:09:31 +0000

Historic feat by legendary pilot. Here’s to you Chuck!