Post #437,664
12/10/20 2:17:42 PM
12/10/20 2:17:42 PM
|

PPSEL. N7522T is my Cessna 172A.
Chuck Yeager was never the pilot Bob Hoover was and from personal accounts I've heard from others, Yeager was an even bigger prick than the standard for test pilots. Some folks I've spoken with who were there said Hoover was supposed to be the pilot for the famous flight, but got sideways with those in charge and was relegated to Yeager's back-up. If half the crap I've heard about Chuck Yeager is true, I've got two words for his passing: good riddance.
bcnu, Mikem
It's mourning in America again.
|
Post #437,675
12/10/20 5:11:34 PM
12/10/20 5:11:34 PM
|

Thanks: myth killed by (likely) Truthiness, aka Be an iconoclast! ..wherever it's important :-)
|
Post #437,682
12/10/20 9:29:04 PM
12/10/20 9:29:04 PM
|

Well, here’s how Hoover remembered it in 2002
Well, he’s a real hero in my book. I knew him intimately. In his book, he wrote a lot about us, our togetherness. I was selected to fly the [Bell] X–1 before him! Of all the people I’ve ever known—you could not have done better than Chuck—the best aviator I’ve ever flown with, that’s a true statement. The feelings run deep, so does the admiration. I can assure you the success of that program (the X–1) could not have been any better accomplished than it was with Chuck at the controls. He’s the best aviator I’ve ever flown with. Great friendship, great admiration. Source here. I really enjoyed Robert Hoover as the nervous frat president in Animal House. cordially,
|
Post #437,689
12/11/20 8:20:19 AM
12/11/20 8:20:19 AM
|

Hoover was a first class guy. No way he'd steal thunder from anybody, let alone Yeager.
It doesn't change the fact that Yeager was a lucky prick.
bcnu, Mikem
It's mourning in America again.
|
Post #437,684
12/10/20 11:28:33 PM
12/10/20 11:28:33 PM
|

I don't remember anything about Hoover, nor much about Yeager.
Yeager was from WV and several things are named after him there. (Or at least they claim him.) His later politics would fit in very easily with the deep red status it has now. Armstrong was an amazing pilot and the obvious choice to be first on the Moon. https://www.airspacemag.com/videos/armstrongs-close-call/Cheers, Scott.
|
Post #437,691
12/11/20 8:39:51 AM
12/11/20 8:39:51 AM
|

Check this out. Short clip of one of Bob's most famous maneuvers.
This is airmanship. The energy management required for that maneuver in a Shrike is exceptional. Bob may have sanitized his narrative in that clip a little for public consumption. The story I got from my retired Air Force primary instructor who knew Bob was that the trick used to be done by setting a shot of whisky on the top of the panel, but the FAA raised hell about it (may have been the CAA back then). Hoover had his airman's medical taken away by the FAA without cause because, well, the FAA does things because they can, not because they should. It was ultimately reinstated. The primary reason you don't remember Hoover is that he was a victim of bureaucratic power.
bcnu, Mikem
It's mourning in America again.
|
Post #437,694
12/11/20 10:14:13 AM
12/11/20 10:14:13 AM
|

Nice parlor trick. Thanks.
But having your craft blow up underneath you and being cool-headed about it is yet another thing. :-)
Cheers, Scott.
|
Post #437,695
12/11/20 10:39:10 AM
12/11/20 10:39:10 AM
|

My father told me a guy he flew with did tricks like that with a pen
Bring a new guy up in the second seat. The pen would already be up on top of the panel. He'd grab a clipboard and start looking around trying to "find" the pen. While looking, start a roll and the pen would float. Land the pen on the clipboard and say, "Oh, there it is."
|
Post #437,697
12/11/20 3:45:10 PM
12/11/20 3:45:10 PM
|

I like to make a sheet of paper heavy.
Have the right seat hold a sheet of paper on their flat open pan, then make it heavy. They're always amazed at how heavy a little sheet of paper can get.
bcnu, Mikem
It's mourning in America again.
|
Post #437,698
12/11/20 4:03:32 PM
12/11/20 4:03:32 PM
|

Were there a Nobel for achieving Perfection, reliably-every-time: this über-Mensch deserves a Statue
Even moi can imagine, if along for the ride: being able to Wonder-at and throughout: the 'scary' zenith of each maneuver ... with pulse at a steady 60 and, simply Enjoying-cheating-death (all at 0-probability). But only with Bob --assuredly there are many with similar talents--but ..well, you Know.
Once I briefly rode pillion with a Mega-star of off-road m/cycle ridership. After the first moments of sheer-Terror I was able to convince self to relax and enjoy, via the mantra ... piece-of-cake ... piece-of-cake ... (and Yes, I Am a physical-Coward re. er, envisioning the meat-ware spread all over a landscape. Still) :-{
|