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On that date, (then) Capt. Charles E. "Chuck" Yeager broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1. The previous evening he was horseback riding at Pancho Barnes' Happy Bottom Riding Club. It was dark and he and his wife were racing toward the corral. Somebody had closed the gate, and Yeager's horse hit it at full speed, tossing him and causing him to sustain a couple of broken ribs!  He knew if he turned himself in the flight surgeon, he'd be grounded from what everyone expected would be the first supersonic flight. So, he managed to board the X-1 and with the help of Jack Ridley who gave him a piece of broomstick to help lock the hatch. He was dropped from the bombay of the B-29 and went supersonic on three of the four rocket chambers..

All hail to General Yeager! :FlagAm:

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I often wondered how that little orange plane stayed aloft with the steel cannonballs it took to get dropped from a B-29, hit the rockets, and hope to visit a place where half the world’s scientists said physics would deny to all who tried. 
 

 

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Funny how Hollywood likes to change even the smallest details. In the movie Chuck got gobsmacked in the face with a tree branch and came off his horse. I guess showing the truth (where his horse plowed into the gate) would've been deemed to offensive to animal lovers everywhere.

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The "Right Stuff"!  Crashed a plane on an altitude record run, ejected, was burned, and still walked his way back to the rescue vehicles.  Shot down in WWII, worked his way back to the Allies, fought to get back flying and fought for our country.  That's a hero in my book.

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Got to see him break it three times at the Edwards AFB airshow. The last time was in 97 for the 50th anniversary. Once in an F-4 and twice in an F-15. The last time it was painted Glamorous Glennis.003.thumb.jpg.0ab0da89b4bf931c0bf0d82e14ba005c.jpg

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1 hour ago, Null N. Void said:

Crashed a plane on an altitude record run, ejected, was burned, and still walked his way back to the rescue vehicles.

 

And when the emergency crews couldn't cut the metal neck ring of his suit he gave them the cable saw he had in his emergency kit.  Did the job.

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2 hours ago, Null N. Void said:

The "Right Stuff"!  Crashed a plane on an altitude record run, ejected, was burned, and still walked his way back to the rescue vehicles.  Shot down in WWII, worked his way back to the Allies, fought to get back flying and fought for our country.  That's a hero in my book.


https://www.chuckyeager.com

 

4DA67EFE-A16E-49D0-ADF4-67264D004570.jpeg

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5 hours ago, Null N. Void said:

The "Right Stuff"!  Crashed a plane on an altitude record run, ejected, was burned, and still walked his way back to the rescue vehicles.  Shot down in WWII, worked his way back to the Allies, fought to get back flying and fought for our country.  That's a hero in my book.

I met him about six months after the NF-104 incident.  A bunch of us AFROTC cadets were taken to Chanute AFB, and he showed us movies taken from the ground.  For a man who nearly lost an eye and was burned on the face, there wasn't a scar on him that we could see!  Yeah, he was my boyhood hero even before that, from reading "Across the High Frontier" and reading about him in National Geographic and other places! Met him again at an event in Denver several years ago.

The funniest part of the movie, "The Right Stuff" was the scene when two test pilots were talking about "Yeager" in Pancho's.  Out of the gloom comes "Fred the Bartender", saying, "Have a beer!"  I about fell off my seat in the theater, laughing so hard people were looking at me.  Of course, "Fred" was Yeager himself! :lol:

Otherwise, IMHO, the movie stank.

Stay well and safe, Pards!

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