Captain Yeager became first person to fly faster than speed of sound on this day in 1947

On October 14, 1947, US Air Force Captain Check Yeager became the first person to fly faster than the speed of the sound. After several years of aviators believing that man was not meant to surpass the speed of sound, the perception was put to rest by Yeager on this day who flew X-1 over Rogers Dry Lake in Southern California. As per existing records, the X-1 was lifted to an altitude of 25,000 feet (7,600 metres) by a B-29 aircraft and then released through the bomb bay. It rocketed to 40,000 feet and exceeded 662 miles per hour, the sound barrier at that altitude. 

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The rocket plane that was nicknamed as ‘Glamorous Glennis’, named after Chuck Yeager’s wife was designed with slim, unswept wings and a streamlined fuselage that was modelled after a 0.50-calibre bullet. What’s remarkable of this incident in history is that it was kept a secret until June 1948. The X-1 was built by the Bell Aircraft Company to explore the boundaries of supersonic flight but its achievement along with Yeager’s record-making flight were kept a secret when the event occurred in 1947. 

Image credits: @HumanoidHistory/Twitter

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Yeager retired in 1975

After making history, Yeager continued to serve as a test pilot. In 153, as per reports, the US Air Force Captain flew at least 1,650 miles per hour in an X-1A rocket plane and eventually retired for serving in the force in 1975. At the time of retirement, Yeager’s rank was brigadier general. Born in Myra, West Virginia in 1923, Yeager was initially a combat fighter during the Second World War. He reportedly flew 64 missions over Europe and shot down 13 German planes. He was himself shot once in France but managed to escape the capture with the assistance of French Underground.  After the war ended, Yeager was chosen among several volunteers chosen to test-fly the experimental X-1 rocket plane. 

Image credits: @HumanoidHistory/Twitter

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