Chuck Yeager

Biography

Retired Brigadier General Charles Elwood Yeager (February 13, 1923 - December 7, 2020) was a former United States Air Force officer, flying ace, and record-setting test pilot. In 1947, he became the first pilot in history confirmed to have exceeded the speed of sound in level flight. Yeager shot down at least 11 enemy aircraft, mostly flying a P-51 Mustang, on the Western Front during WWII. After the war, he went on to become a test pilot during a time of major investment and rapid technological development of aircraft in the late 1940s and the 1950s. Flying the Bell X-1, a small experimental rocket-powered aircraft, Yeager became the first human to officially break the sound barrier (exceeding Mach 1), on October 14, 1947. He continued to test pilot a variety of aircraft and set many subsequent aviation records.

Known For

CBS News Sunday Morning

Goodyear Television Playhouse

The Right Stuff

Smokey and the Bandit II

Looney Tunes 50th Anniversary

Air & Space Smithsonian: Dreams of Flight - Higher Faster Farther

All Movies (6)

• The Real Men with 'The Right Stuff'2003 · as Self
• Air & Space Smithsonian: Dreams of Flight - Higher Faster Farther1995 · as Self
• Looney Tunes 50th Anniversary1986 · as Self
• The Right Stuff1983 · as Fred
• Smokey and the Bandit II1980 · as Party Guest
• Breaking the Sound Barrier1947 · as Self

All TV Shows (4)

• Spaceflight1985
• This Is Your Life1983 · as Self
• CBS News Sunday Morning1979 · as Self (archive footage)
• Goodyear Television Playhouse1951