Chuck Yeager

American World War II ace and test pilot. Charles ("Chuck") Yeager achieved the rank of Brigadier General in the Air Force. He is most famous for being the first person to travel faster than Mach 1, the speed of sound, in level flight.

On October 14, 1947, Yeager broke the sound barrier flying the Bell X-1 at an altitude of 45,000 feet.

The X-1 was an experimental rocket plane, nicknamed the Glamorous Glennis after Yeager's wife. This aircraft is now on display at the Smithsonian?'s National Air And Space Museum.

Yeager went on to break other records for speed and altitude.