Legendary Pilot Chuck Yeager Passes at 97
Air Force officer and test pilot Chuck Yeager died, last night. His wife Victoria said, quote, “An incredible life well lived, America’s Greatest Pilot, & a legacy of strength, adventure, & patriotism will be remembered forever.”
In October of 1947, Chuck became the first test pilot to break the sound barrier in a rocket plane over Muroc Dry Lake in California. Yeager later commanded fighter squadrons, in Germany and Southeast Asia, during the Vietnam War.
He was played by Sam Shepard in the 1983 film “The Right Stuff.” And he appeared in a cameo role, as a bartender, named Fred.
For many in the USA, Yeager is remembered and revered as the brave soul who heroically bridged American aviation into aeronautics.
He opened the sky of possibilities for NASA, and our astronauts.
