View source for Chuck Yeager

{{Short description|American flying ace and test pilot (1923–2020)}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2020}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox military person
| image          = ChuckYeager.jpg
| caption        = Brigadier General Chuck Yeager
| birth_name     = Charles Elwood Yeager
| birth_date     = {{Birth date|1923|02|13}}
| birth_place    = [[Myra, West Virginia]], U.S.
| death_date     = {{Death date and age|2020|12|07|1923|02|13}}
| death_place    = Los Angeles, California,<!--Links not needed per MOS:OVERLINK--> U.S.
| burial_place   = 
| allegiance     = {{Flag|United States}}
| branch         = {{ubl|{{Flagicon image|US Army Air Corps Hap Arnold Wings.svg}} [[United States Army Air Forces]]|{{air force|US}}}}
| service_years  = {{ubl|1941–1947 (Army Air Forces)|1947–1975 (Air Force)}}
| rank           = [[File:US-O7 insignia.svg|16px]] [[Brigadier general (United States)|Brigadier general]]
| battles        = {{Plainlist|
* [[World War II]]
* [[Korean War]]
* [[Vietnam War]]
}}
| awards         = {{Indented plainlist|
* [[Air Force Distinguished Service Medal]]
* [[Army Distinguished Service Medal]]
* [[Silver Star]] (2)
* [[Legion of Merit]] (2)
* [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]] (3)
* [[Bronze Star Medal]]
* [[Purple Heart]]
* ''([[#Awards and decorations|more...]])''
}}
| spouse         = {{Plainlist|
* {{marriage|Glennis Dickhouse|1945|1990|end=died}}
* {{marriage|Victoria Scott D'Angelo|2003}}
}}
| children       = 4
| relations      = [[Steve Yeager]] (cousin)
| other_work     = {{Hlist|[[Flight instructor]]|[[test pilot]]}}
| website        = {{official website|www.chuckyeager.com}}
| signature      = Chuck Yeager signature.SVG
| signature_size = 150px
}}

[[Brigadier general (United States)|Brigadier General]] '''Charles Elwood Yeager''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|j|eɪ|ɡ|ər}} {{respell|YAY|gər}}, February 13, 1923{{spnd}}December 7, 2020) was a [[United States Air Force]] officer, [[flying ace]], and record-setting [[test pilot]] who in October 1947 became the first pilot in history confirmed to have exceeded the [[speed of sound]] in level flight.

Yeager was raised in [[Hamlin, West Virginia]]. His career began in [[World War II]] as a [[Private (rank)|private]] in the [[United States Army]], assigned to the [[United States Army Air Forces|Army Air Forces]] in 1941.{{#tag:ref|Yeager had not been in an airplane prior to January 1942, when his Engineering Officer invited him on a test flight after maintenance of an [[Beechcraft Model 18|AT-11]]. He related that he became very sick on the flight: "After puking all over myself I said, 'Yeager, you made a big mistake'".<ref>{{cite magazine|title=My First Time|magazine=Air & Space/Smithsonian|volume=17|issue=2|date=June–July 2002|page=48}}</ref>|group=lower-alpha}} After serving as an aircraft mechanic, in September 1942, he entered [[Enlisted rank|enlisted]] pilot training and upon graduation was promoted to the rank of [[flight officer]] (the World War II Army Air Force version of the Army's [[Warrant officer (United States)|warrant officer]]), later achieving most of his aerial victories as a [[North American P-51 Mustang|P-51 Mustang]] [[fighter pilot]] on the [[Western Front (World War II)|Western Front]], where he was credited with shooting down 11.5 enemy aircraft. The half credit is from a second pilot assisting him in a single shootdown. On October 12, 1944, he attained "[[ace in a day]]" status, shooting down five enemy aircraft in one mission.

After the war, Yeager became a test pilot and flew many types of aircraft, including experimental rocket-powered aircraft for the [[National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics]] (NACA). Through the NACA program, he became the first human to officially break the [[sound barrier]] on October 14, 1947, when he flew the experimental [[Bell X-1]] at [[Mach number|Mach 1.05]] at an altitude of {{cvt|45000|ft|m|sigfig=3}}, for which he won both the [[Collier Trophy|Collier]] and [[Mackay Trophy|Mackay]] trophies in 1948. He broke several other speed and altitude records in the following years. In 1962, he became the first commandant of the [[U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School|USAF Aerospace Research Pilot School]], which trained and produced [[astronaut]]s for [[NASA]] and the Air Force.

Yeager later commanded fighter squadrons and wings in Germany, as well as in Southeast Asia during the [[Vietnam War]]. In recognition of his achievements and the outstanding performance ratings of those units, he was promoted to [[brigadier general]] in 1969 and inducted into the [[National Aviation Hall of Fame]] in 1973, retiring on March 1, 1975, for its colloquial similarity to "Mach 1". His three-war active-duty flying career spanned more than 30 years and took him to many parts of the world, including the [[Korean War]] zone and the [[Soviet Union]] during the height of the [[Cold War]].

Yeager is referred to by many as one of the greatest pilots of all time, and was ranked fifth on ''[[Flying (magazine)|Flying]]''{{'s}} list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation in 2013. He flew more than 360 different types of aircraft over a 70-year period, and continued to fly for two decades after retirement as a consultant pilot for the United States Air Force. In 2020 at the age of 97, Yeager died in a Los Angeles-area hospital.

== Early life==
Chuck Yeager was born February 13, 1923, in [[Myra, West Virginia]],<ref>{{cite news|title=Chuck Yeager, Test Pilot Who Broke the Sound Barrier, Is Dead at 97|access-date=December 8, 2020|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/07/us/chuck-yeager-dead.html|last1=Goldstein|first1=Richard|newspaper=The New York Times|date=December 7, 2020}}</ref> to farming parents Albert Hal Yeager (1896–1963) and Susie Mae Yeager ({{nee|Sizemore}}; 1898–1987).<ref>{{cite book|first=Ken|last=Sullivan|publisher=West Virginia Humanities Council|year=2006|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g0cUAQAAIAAJ&q=%22Albert+Hal+and+Susie+Mae+Sizemore+Yeager%22|title=The West Virginia Encyclopedia|isbn=978-0-9778498-0-2|access-date=October 15, 2018|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181015192316/https://books.google.ca/books?id=g0cUAQAAIAAJ&q=%22Albert+Hal+and+Susie+Mae+Sizemore+Yeager%22&dq=%22Albert+Hal+and+Susie+Mae+Sizemore+Yeager%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjqn92PqIjeAhWBl-AKHeqmAcsQ6AEIFjAA|archive-date=October 15, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> The surname Yeager was an anglicised [[orthographic transcription]] of the German surname Jäger (hunter) or Jaeger, based on his German-Dutch ancestors. Yeager had two brothers, Roy and Hal Jr., and two sisters, Doris Ann, who was accidentally killed at age two by four-year-old Roy when he was playing with a firearm.<ref>{{cite news|title=Four-Year-Old Boy Kills Baby Sister with Gun|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/65128536/doris-ann-yeager-1929-1930/|newspaper=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette |date=December 23, 1930|location=Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania|page=2|access-date=December 12, 2020|via=Newspapers.com {{Open access}}}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/interviews/a5431/chuck-yeager-quotes-0109/|publisher=[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]]|title=Chuck Yeager: What I've Learned|date=December 25, 2008|access-date=May 25, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140713070721/http://www.esquire.com/features/what-ive-learned/chuck-yeager-quotes-0109|archive-date=July 13, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="yeagerbio_6">{{cite book |last1=Yeager|first1=Chuck|first2=Leo|last2=Janos|name-list-style=amp|title=Yeager: An Autobiography|url=https://archive.org/details/yeagerautobiogra00yeag|url-access=registration|location=New York|publisher=Bantam Books|year=1985|isbn=978-0-553-25674-1|page=https://archive.org/details/yeagerautobiogra00yeag/page/6 6}}</ref> and Pansy Lee.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://chuckyeager.com/searching-for-grandpa-yeagers-house|title=Searching For Grandpa Yeager’s House|author=Yeager, Victoria|publisher=General Chuck Yeager: Official Website|language=en-US|url-status=live|date=July 13, 2010|access-date=March 11, 2026|archive-date=February 6, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250206115043/https://chuckyeager.com/searching-for-grandpa-yeagers-house}}</ref> His cousin, [[Steve Yeager]], was a [[professional baseball]] [[catcher]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Kantowski|first1=Ron|title=Q+A Steve Yeager|url=http://lasvegassun.com/news/2006/apr/06/qa-steve-yeager/|access-date=February 26, 2016|newspaper=Las Vegas Sun|date=April 6, 2006|quote=He's not my uncle, he's a cousin. That's a misprint. You can't believe everything you read.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308015218/http://lasvegassun.com/news/2006/apr/06/qa-steve-yeager/|archive-date= March 8, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>{{refn|Chuck Yeager is not related to [[Jeana Yeager]], one of the two pilots of the [[Rutan Voyager]] aircraft, which circled the world without landing or refueling.<ref>{{cite news|title=Jeana Yeager Was Not Just Along for the Ride |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-12-24-mn-236-story.html|access-date=February 26, 2016|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=December 24, 1986|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304231049/http://articles.latimes.com/1986-12-24/news/mn-236_1_jeana-yeager|archive-date=March 4, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>|group=lower-alpha}}

When he was five years old, his family moved to the nearby village of [[Hamlin, West Virginia]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://chuckyeager.com/history/humble-beginnings|title=Searching For Grandpa Yeager’s House|author=White, Shannon|publisher=General Chuck Yeager: Official Website|language=en-US|url-status=live|date=July 13, 2010|access-date=March 11, 2026|archive-date=January 16, 2026|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260116212614/https://chuckyeager.com/history/humble-beginnings}}</ref><ref name=AcademyAchievement>{{cite web|url=https://achievement.org/achiever/general-chuck-yeager/|title=General Chuck Yeager, USAF|publisher=[[American Academy of Achievement]]|language=en-US|url-status=live|date=November 18, 2024|access-date=March 11, 2026|archive-date=January 24, 2026|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260124105132/https://achievement.org/achiever/general-chuck-yeager/}}</ref> where he grew up.<ref name=AcademyAchievement/> He attended Hamlin High School, where he played [[basketball]] and [[American football|football]], receiving his best grades in [[geometry]] and [[typing]]. He graduated from high school in June 1941.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chuckyeager.com/1923-1941-growing-up|title=Chuck Yeager's Humble Beginnings|website=chuckyeager.com|access-date=May 6, 2020|archive-date=June 15, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120615164729/http://www.chuckyeager.com/1923-1941-growing-up|url-status=dead}}</ref>

His first experience with the military was as a teen at the [[Citizens Military Training Camp]] at [[Fort Benjamin Harrison]], [[Indianapolis]], Indiana, during the summers of 1939 and 1940.<ref name=OfficialSiteTheMan>{{cite magazine|last=Houvouras|first=John H. |url=http://www.chuckyeager.com/HuntingtonQuarterly.pdf|title=The Man|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923203135/http://www.chuckyeager.com/HuntingtonQuarterly.pdf|archive-date=September 23, 2015 |magazine=The Huntington Quarterly|date=Winter 1998|page=21|access-date=April 14, 2015}}</ref>
 
== Career ==
=== World War II ===
On September 12, 1941, Yeager enlisted as a private in the [[United States Army Air Forces|U.S. Army Air Forces]] (USAAF), and became an aircraft mechanic at [[George Air Force Base]], [[Victorville, California]]. At enlistment, Yeager was not eligible for flight training because of his age and educational background, but the entry of the U.S. into World War II less than three months later prompted the USAAF to alter its recruiting standards. Yeager had unusually sharp vision, a [[visual acuity]] rated 20/10, which once enabled him to shoot a deer at {{cvt|600|yd}}.<ref name="yeagerbio_297">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p= 297|ps=.}}</ref>

At the time of his flight training acceptance, he was a crew chief on an [[Beechcraft Model 18|AT-11]].<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.chuckyeager.com/1941-1943-training-for-war| title = Chuck Yeager's Training for War| access-date = May 14, 2020| archive-date = April 29, 2020| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200429163607/http://www.chuckyeager.com/1941-1943-training-for-war| url-status = dead}}</ref> He received his [[U.S. Air Force aeronautical rating|pilot wings]] and a promotion to [[Warrant Officer (United States)#Flight Officer|flight officer]] at [[Luke Air Force Base|Luke Field]], [[Arizona]], where he graduated from Class 43C on March 10, 1943. Assigned to the [[357th Fighter Group]] at [[Tonopah, Nevada]], he initially trained as a fighter pilot, flying [[Bell P-39 Airacobra]]s (being grounded for seven days for clipping a farmer's tree during a training flight),<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Take Off Magazine #36|magazine=Take Off|number=36|page=991}}</ref> and shipped overseas with the group on November 23, 1943.<ref>{{cite web|last=Poffenberger|first=Leah|date=October 2020|title=This Month in Physics History|url=http://www.aps.org/publications/apsnews/202010/history.cfm|access-date=December 8, 2020 |publisher=American Physical Society}}</ref>

[[File:Captain Charles E. Yeager.jpg|thumb|upright|Yeager in {{circa|1944}} was a young [[Captain (United States O-3)|captain]] in the [[United States Army Air Forces]].]]
Stationed in the United Kingdom at [[RAF Leiston]], Yeager flew [[North American P-51 Mustang|P-51 Mustangs]] in combat with the [[363d Fighter Squadron]]. He named his aircraft ''Glamorous Glen''<ref>{{cite web|title=Chuck Yeager downs five – becomes an 'Ace in a Day'|date=n.d.|access-date=July 7, 2015|website=World War II Today|url=http://ww2today.com/12-october-1944-chuck-yeager-downs-five-becomes-an-ace-in-a-day|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150121114735/http://ww2today.com/12-october-1944-chuck-yeager-downs-five-becomes-an-ace-in-a-day|archive-date=January 21, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=12 October 1944|date=n.d.|access-date=July 7, 2015|website=This Day in Aviation|url=http://www.thisdayinaviation.com/tag/363d-fighter-squadron/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150707233503/http://www.thisdayinaviation.com/tag/363d-fighter-squadron/|archive-date=July 7, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> after his girlfriend, Glennis Faye Dickhouse, who became his wife in February 1945. Yeager had gained one victory before he was shot down over France in his first aircraft (P-51B-5-NA s/n 43-6763) on March 5, 1944, on his eighth mission.<ref name=EscapeEvasion>{{cite web|url=http://narademo.umiacs.umd.edu/cgi-bin/isadg/viewitem.pl?item=105467|title=Escape and Evasion Case File for Flight Officer Charles (Chuck) E. Yeager|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090218212756/http://narademo.umiacs.umd.edu/cgi-bin/isadg/viewitem.pl?item=105467|archive-date=February 18, 2009|website=narademo.umiacs.umd.edu|access-date=December 8, 2010}}</ref> He escaped to Spain on March 30, 1944, with the help of the ''[[Maquis (World War II)|Maquis]]'' (French Resistance) and returned to England on May 15, 1944. During his stay with the ''Maquis'', Yeager assisted the guerrillas in duties that did not involve direct combat; he helped construct bombs for the group, a skill that he had learned from his father.<ref name="yeagerbio_45">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p=45}}</ref> He was awarded the [[Bronze Star Medal|Bronze Star]] for helping a navigator, Omar M. "Pat" Patterson Jr., to cross the [[Pyrenees]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Michon |first=Heather|date=November 10, 2018|title=The Story of Chuck Yeager, the Pilot Who Broke the Sound Barrier|url=https://www.thoughtco.com/chuck-yeager-pilot-biography-4169722|access-date=December 8, 2020 |publisher=ThoughtCo}}</ref>

Despite a regulation prohibiting "evaders" (escaped pilots) from flying over enemy territory again, the purpose of which was to prevent resistance groups from being compromised by giving the enemy a second chance to possibly capture him, Yeager was reinstated to flying combat. He had joined another evader, fellow P-51 pilot 1st Lt Fred Glover,<ref>{{cite book|last=Disney|first=Ryan|title=Escape & Evasion Report No. 686: The True Story of an American Fighter Pilot's Escape from Nazi-Occupied France|publisher=Amazon Digital Services|year=2016|asin=B01N9LBA0H}}</ref> in speaking directly to the [[Supreme Allied Commander]], General [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]], on June 12, 1944.<ref>{{cite book|last=Williams|first=Colleen Madonna Flood|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rO5bAgAAQBAJ&q=%22Chuck+Yeager%22+%22Eisenhower%22+%22June+12%22&pg=PT31|title=Chuck Yeager|date=2013|publisher=Infobase Learning|isbn=978-1-4381-4735-2}}</ref> "I raised so much hell that General Eisenhower finally let me go back to my squadron" Yeager said. "He cleared me for combat after [[D Day]], because all the free Frenchmen – Maquis and people like that – had surfaced".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://airportjournals.com/chuck-yeager-booming-and-zooming-part-1/|title=Chuck Yeager: Booming And Zooming (Part 1)|date=November 3, 2003 |publisher=Airport Journals}}</ref> Eisenhower, after gaining permission from the War Department to decide the requests, concurred with Yeager and Glover.<ref name=":0" /> In the meantime, Yeager shot down his second enemy aircraft, a German [[Junkers Ju 88]] bomber, over the [[English Channel]].<ref name=":0">{{cite book|last=Press|first=Salem|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=obVZAAAAYAAJ|title=American Heroes|date=2009|publisher=Salem Press|isbn=978-1-58765-460-2|page=1041}}</ref>

[[File:P51-1 300.jpg|thumb|[[North American P-51 Mustang|P-51D-20NA]], ''Glamorous Glen III'', is the aircraft in which Yeager achieved most of his aerial victories.]]
Yeager demonstrated outstanding flying skills and combat leadership. On October 12, 1944, he became the first pilot in his group to make "[[ace in a day]]," downing five enemy aircraft in a single mission. Two of these victories were scored without firing a single shot: when he flew into firing position against a [[Messerschmitt Bf 109]], the pilot of the aircraft panicked, breaking to port and colliding with his wingman.<ref name="yeagerbio_57">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p=57|page=https://archive.org/details/yeagerautobiogra00yeag/page/57}}</ref> Yeager said both pilots bailed out. He finished the war with 11.5 official victories, including one of the first air-to-air victories over a jet fighter, a German [[Messerschmitt Me 262]] that he shot down as it was on final approach for landing.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://warfarehistorynetwork.com/daily/wwii/chuck-yeager-fighter-pilot/|last=Niderost|first=Eric|title=Chuck Yeager: Fighter Pilot |publisher=Warfare History Network|date=June 21, 2017|access-date=March 29, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180329064304/http://warfarehistorynetwork.com/daily/wwii/chuck-yeager-fighter-pilot/ |archive-date=March 29, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chuckyeager.com/yeager-destroys-an-me-262|title=Encounter Report|date=November 6, 1944|access-date=March 29, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180222114645/http://www.chuckyeager.com/yeager-destroys-an-me-262|archive-date=February 22, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

Yeager's official statement of the 12 October mission states: {{Blockquote
|text="I was leading the Group with Cement Squadron and was roving out to the right of the first box of bombers.  I was over STEINHUDER LAKE when 22 Me. 109s crossed in front of my Squadron from 11:00 O’Clock to 1:00 O’Clock.  I was coming out of the sun and they were about 1 ½ miles away at the same level of 28,000 feet.  I fell in behind the enemy formation and followed them for about 3 minutes, climbing to 30,000 feet.  I still had my wing tanks and had closed up to around 1,000 yards, coming within firing range and positioning the Squadron behind the entire enemy formation.  Two of the Me. 109s were lagging over to the right.  One slowed up and, before I could start firing, rolled over and bailed out.  The other Me. 109, flying his wing, bailed out immediately after as I was ready to line him in my sights.  I was the closest to the tail-end of the enemy formation and no one, but myself, was in shooting range and no one was firing.  I dropped my tanks and then closed up to the last Jerry and opened fire from 600 yards, using the K-14 sight.  I observed strikes all over the ship, particularly heavy in the cockpit.  He skidded off to the left and was smoking and streaming coolant and went into a slow diving turn to the left.  I was closing up on another Me. 109 so I did not follow him down.  Lt. STERN, flying in Blue Flight, reports this E/A on fire as it passed him and went into a spin.  I closed up on the next Me. 109 to 100 yards, skidded to the right and took a deflection shot of about 10o.  I gave about a 3 second burst and the whole fuselage splitopen and blew up after we passed.  Another Me. 109 to the right had cut his throttle and was trying to get behind.  I broke to the right and quickly rolled to the left on his tail.  He started pulling it in and I was pulling 6”G”.  I got a lead from around 300 yards and gave him a short burst.  There were hits on wings and tail section.  He snapped to the right 3 times and bailed out when he quit snapping at around 18,000 feet.

I did not blackout during this engagement due to the efficiency of the “G” Suit.  Even though I was skidding I hit the second Me. 109s by keeping the bead and range on the E/A.  To my estimation the K-14 Sight is the biggest improvement to combat equipment for Fighters up to this date.

The Me. 109s appeared to have a type of bubble canopy and had purple noses and were a mousey brown all over.

I claim Five Me. 109s destroyed."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Charles Yeager {{!}} 357th Fighter Group {{!}} World War II {{!}} 12 October 1944 |url=https://www.8af.org/charles-yeager-357th-fighter-group-10-12-1944.cfm }}</ref>  }}

In his 1986 memoirs, Yeager recalled with disgust that "atrocities were committed by both sides", and said he went on a mission with orders from the [[Eighth Air Force]] to "[[Indiscriminate attack|strafe anything that moved]]".<ref name="Wolfgang W. E p454">{{cite book|last=Samuel|first=Wolfgang W. E.|title=American Raiders: The Race to Capture the Luftwaffe's Secrets|location=Jackson|publisher=University Press of Mississippi|year=2004 |isbn=978-1-57806-649-0|page=454}}</ref><ref name="J. Coady p.13">{{cite book|last=Coady|first=C. A. J.|title=Morality and Political Violence|location=Cambridge|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2008 |isbn=978-0-521-70548-6|page=13}}</ref> During the mission briefing, he whispered to Major [[Donald H. Bochkay]], "If we are going to do things like this, we sure as hell better make sure we are on the winning side".<ref name="Wolfgang W. E p454"/><ref name="J. Coady p.13"/> Yeager said, "I'm certainly not proud of that particular strafing mission against civilians. But it is there, on the record and in my memory".<ref>{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|pp=63, 80|ps=.}}</ref> He also expressed bitterness at his treatment in England during World War II, describing the British as "arrogant" and "nasty" on Twitter.<ref>{{cite news|first=Adam |last=Boult|date=October 5, 2016|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/10/05/british-people-are-nasty-and-arrogant-says-wwii-flying-ace-chuck/|title=WWII flying ace Chuck Yeager in extraordinary attack on 'nasty' and 'arrogant' British people|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|location=London|access-date=April 5, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180226215647/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/10/05/british-people-are-nasty-and-arrogant-says-wwii-flying-ace-chuck/|archive-date=February 26, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

Yeager was commissioned a [[Second lieutenant#United States|second lieutenant]] while at [[Leiston]], and was promoted to [[Captain (U.S. Air Force)|captain]] before the end of his tour. He flew his 61st and final mission on January 15, 1945, and returned to the United States in early February 1945. As an evader, he received his choice of assignments and, because his new wife was pregnant, chose [[Wright Field]] to be near his home in [[West Virginia]]. His high number of flight hours and maintenance experience qualified him to become a functional test pilot of repaired aircraft, which brought him under the command of Colonel [[Albert Boyd]], head of the Aeronautical Systems Flight Test Division.<ref name="yeagerbio_60">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p= 60|ps=.}}</ref>

=== Post-World War II ===
====Test pilot – breaking the sound barrier====
After the war, Yeager remained in the [[United States Army Air Forces|U.S. Army Air Forces]]. Upon graduating from [[U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School|Air Materiel Command Flight Performance School]] (Class 46C),<ref>{{cite web |title=Getting schooled with the Air Force's elite test pilots |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/getting-schooled-with-the-air-forces-elite-test-pilots <!--|title = Test pilot Capt Chuck Yeager--> |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170906051721/https://www.cnet.com/news/getting-schooled-with-the-air-forces-elite-test-pilots/ |archive-date=September 6, 2017 |access-date=April 30, 2017 |publisher=CNET}}</ref> Yeager became a test pilot at Muroc Army Air Field (now [[Edwards Air Force Base]]). After [[Bell Aircraft]] test pilot [[Chalmers "Slick" Goodlin]] demanded {{US$|150000|1947|round=-4}}<!--over US$1.7 million in 2020 dollars--> to break the sound barrier, the USAAF selected the 24-year-old Yeager to fly the rocket-powered [[Bell X-1|Bell XS-1]] in a [[National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics|NACA]] program to research high-speed flight.<ref name="yeagerbio_121">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p=121|ps=.}}</ref><ref name="right_stuff_52-53">{{cite book|author-link=Tom Wolfe|last=Wolfe|first=Tom|title-link=The Right Stuff (book)|title=The Right Stuff |location=New York|publisher=Farrar, Straus and Giroux|year=1979|isbn=0-374-25033-2|pages=[https://archive.org/details/rightstuff00tomw/page/52 52–53]}}</ref> Under the [[National Security Act of 1947]], the USAAF became the [[United States Air Force]] (USAF) on September 18.

[[File:Chuck Yeager.jpg|thumb|Yeager stands in front of the [[Bell X-1]] named ''Glamorous Glennis''. He named all of his assigned aircraft in some variation after his wife.]]
Yeager's flight was scheduled for October 14.<ref name="yeagerbio_157">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p=157 |ps=.}}</ref> Two nights before his flight, Yeager went horseback riding with his wife and fell, breaking two ribs under his right arm. Worried the injury would remove him from the mission, Yeager had a civilian doctor in nearby [[Rosamond, California|Rosamond]] tape his ribs.<ref name="Ryan">{{cite book|last1=Ryan|first1=Craig|title=Sonic Wind: The Story of John Paul Stapp and How a Renegade Doctor Became the Fastest Man on Earth|date= 2015|publisher=W. W. Norton & Company|isbn=978-1-63149-079-8|pages=98–99|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ID-dBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT98|access-date=February 26, 2016}}</ref>{{refn|In some versions of the story, the doctor was a veterinarian; however, local residents have noted that Rosamond was so small that it had neither a medical doctor nor a veterinarian.<ref name="Ryan"/>|group=lower-alpha}}

To seal the hatch of the XS-1, the pilot needed to hold the hatch in position and use their right arm to slam down a heavy lever. Yeager would not be able to seal the hatch with his broken ribs, so Yeager secretly asked his friend and fellow project pilot [[Jack Ridley (pilot)|Jack Ridley]] for a solution. Ridley sawed off the end of a broom handle for Yeager to use as a lever to seal the hatch.<ref>{{cite news|last=Fountain|first=Nigel |date=December 8, 2020|title=Chuck Yeager obituary|newspaper=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/dec/08/chuck-yeager-obituary|access-date=December 8, 2020|issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

[[File:Chuck Yeager X-1 (color).jpg|thumb|left|Yeager is in the Bell X-1 cockpit.]]
Yeager broke the [[sound barrier]] on October 14, 1947, in level flight while piloting the X-1 ''Glamorous Glennis'' at [[Mach number|Mach 1.05]] at an altitude of {{cvt|45000|ft|m|sigfig=3}}<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1947/12/22/archives/new-us-plane-said-to-fly-faster-than-speed-of-sound-said-to-have.html|title=New U.S. Plane Said to Fly Faster Than Speed of Sound|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180723004851/https://www.nytimes.com/1947/12/22/archives/new-us-plane-said-to-fly-faster-than-speed-of-sound-said-to-have.html|archive-date=July 23, 2018|newspaper=The New York Times|date=December 22, 1947|quote=An experimental rocket plane, the Bell XS-1, has flown faster than the speed of sound a number of times recently, ''[[Aviation Week & Space Technology|Aviation Week]]'' reports in an issue to be released tomorrow.}}</ref>{{refn|Yeager was the first confirmed to break the sound barrier, and the first by any measure to do it in level flight. Other pilots who have been suggested as unproven possibilities to have exceeded the sound barrier before Yeager were all flying in a steep dive for the supposed occurrence. There is anecdotal evidence that American pilot [[George Welch (pilot)|George Welch]] may have broken the sound barrier two weeks before Yeager, while diving an [[North American F-86 Sabre|XP-86 Sabre]] on October 1, 1947, and again on October 14, just 30 minutes before Yeager's X-1 flight. However, the precision instruments used to carefully document the speed of Yeager's flight were not used during Welch's flights.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Blackburn|first=Al|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140511104429/http://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/mach-match-361247/?all|archive-date=May 11, 2014|url=http://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/mach-match-361247/?all|title=Mach match: Did an XP-86 beat Yeager to the punch?|magazine=Smithsonian Air & Space Magazine|publisher=The Smithsonian|date=January 1999|access-date=April 14, 2015}}</ref> Even earlier, German pilot [[Lothar Sieber]] was estimated to have broken the speed of sound during his fatal test-flight of the rocket-powered [[Bachem Natter]] on March 1, 1945, although the speed was not officially measured.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/pilot-chuck-yeagers-resolve-to-break-the-sound-barrier-was-made-of-the-right-stuff/news-story/b5cc3ee54c061c32b0bb08f42e11ab24|title=Pilot Chuck Yeager's resolve to break the sound barrier was made of the right stuff|last=Donnelly |first=Marea|date=October 13, 2017|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|access-date=March 29, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171018195504/http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/pilot-chuck-yeagers-resolve-to-break-the-sound-barrier-was-made-of-the-right-stuff/news-story/b5cc3ee54c061c32b0bb08f42e11ab24|archive-date=October 18, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> In his 1990 book ''Me-163'', former [[Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet]] pilot Mano Ziegler claims that his friend, test pilot [[Heini Dittmar]], broke the sound barrier and that on July 6, 1944, he reached 1,130 km/h in dive, and that several people on the ground heard the sonic booms. There was also a disputed claim by German pilot [[Hans Guido Mutke]] that he was the first person to break the sound barrier, on April 9, 1945, in a [[Messerschmitt Me 262]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Yoon|first=Joe |url=http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/history/q0198c.shtml|title=Me 262 and the Sound Barrier|website=aerospaceweb.org|date=October 7, 2004|access-date=April 14, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305021742/http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/history/q0198c.shtml|archive-date=March 5, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>|group=lower-alpha}} over the [[Rogers Dry Lake]] of the [[Mojave Desert]] in California.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/technology/X-1-airplane|title=Bell X-1|publisher=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=English|access-date=December 8, 2022}}</ref> The success of the mission was not announced to the public for nearly eight months, until June 10, 1948.<ref name=ppgfsnd>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=AAwNAAAAIBAJ&pg=2734%2C2355693 |newspaper=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette |agency=Associated Press |title=Two U.S. planes fly faster than sound |date=June 11, 1948 |page=4}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/yeager-breaks-sound-barrier |title=This day in history: Yeager breaks the sound barrier|date=November 24, 2009 |access-date=September 5, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905061022/http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/yeager-breaks-sound-barrier|archive-date=September 5, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Yeager was awarded the [[Mackay Trophy]] and the [[Collier Trophy]] in 1948 for his mach-transcending flight,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.naa.aero/html/awards/index.cfm?cmsid=192|title=Mackay 1940–1949 Winners|publisher=National Aeronautic Association|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120127182450/http://www.naa.aero/html/awards/index.cfm?cmsid=192|archive-date=January 27, 2012}}</ref><ref name="collier-1940-1949-winners">{{cite web|title=Collier 1940–1949 Recipients|url=https://naa.aero/awards/awards-and-trophies/collier-trophy/collier-1940-1949-winners|publisher=National Aeronautic Association|access-date=July 22, 2020}}</ref> and the [[Harmon International Trophy]] in 1954.<ref name="nyt1954">{{cite news|url=https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0F10FC3B5E107B93C7A9178CD85F418585F9|title=Harmon Prizes go for 2 Air "Firsts"; Vertical-Flight Test Pilot and Airship Endurance Captain Are 1955 Winners|newspaper=The New York Times|date=July 5, 1955}}</ref> The X-1 he flew that day was later put on permanent display at the [[Smithsonian Institution]]'s [[National Air and Space Museum]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Bell X-1 "Glamorous Glennis"|url=https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/bell-x-1-glamorous-glennis/nasm_A19510007000|publisher=National Air and Space Museum |access-date=December 8, 2020}}</ref> During 1952, he attended the [[Air Command and Staff College]].<ref>{{cite web|title=BRIGADIER GENERAL CHARLES E. "CHUCK" YEAGER|url=https://www.af.mil/About-Us/Biographies/Display/Article/105165/charles-e-chuck-yeager/|publisher=United States Air Force |access-date=April 26, 2022}}</ref>

[[File:Charles Yeager photo portrait head on shoulders left side.jpg|thumb|upright|Yeager in 1950.]]
Yeager continued to break many speed and altitude records. He was one of the first American pilots to fly a [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15]], after its pilot, [[No Kum-sok]], defected to [[South Korea]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Clark|first=Mark|title=From the Danube to the Yalu|location=New York|publisher=Harper|year=1954|page=208}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Kum-Suk|first1=No|first2=J. Roger|last2=Osterholm |title=A MiG-15 to Freedom: Memoir of the Wartime North Korean Defector who First Delivered the Secret Fighter Jet to the Americans in 1953|location=Jefferson, North Carolina|publisher=McFarland & Co.|year=2007 |isbn=978-0-7864-0210-6|page=158}}</ref> Returning to Muroc, during the latter half of 1953, Yeager was involved with the USAF team that was working on the [[Bell X-1#X-1A|X-1A]], an aircraft designed to surpass Mach 2 in level flight. That year, he flew a [[chase plane|chase aircraft]] for the civilian pilot [[Jacqueline Cochran|Jackie Cochran]] as she became the first woman to fly faster than sound.<ref name="yeagerbio_252"/>

On November 20, 1953, the [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] program involving the [[Douglas D-558-2 Skyrocket|Douglas D-558-II Skyrocket]] and its pilot, [[Scott Crossfield]], became the first team to reach twice the speed of sound. After they were bested, Ridley and Yeager decided to beat rival Crossfield's speed record in a series of test flights that they dubbed "Operation NACA Weep". They not only beat Crossfield by setting a new record at Mach 2.44 on December 12, 1953, but also did so in time to spoil a celebration planned for the [[Wright brothers|50th anniversary of flight]], at which Crossfield was to be called "the fastest man alive".<ref name="yeagerbio_252">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p=252|ps=.}}</ref>

The new record flight, however, did not entirely go to plan, since shortly after reaching Mach 2.44, Yeager lost control of the X-1A at about {{cvt|80000|ft|m}} due to [[inertia coupling]], a phenomenon largely unknown at the time. With the aircraft simultaneously rolling, pitching, and yawing out of control, Yeager dropped {{cvt|51000|ft|m}} in less than a minute before regaining control at around {{cvt|29000|ft|m}}. He then managed to land without further incident.<ref name="yeagerbio_252"/> For this feat, Yeager was awarded the [[Distinguished Service Medal (U.S. Army)|Distinguished Service Medal]] (DSM) in 1954.<ref>{{cite news|date=August 1954|title=Airpower in the News|volume=37|page=17|magazine=Air Force Magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I1jdZ3m2uFgC&pg=RA9-PA9}}</ref>{{Refn|Yeager received the DSM in the Army design, since the [[Air Force Distinguished Service Medal]] was not awarded until 1965.|group=lower-alpha}}

==== Military command ====
[[File:Chuck Yeager 1950.jpg|thumb|Yeager was Commandant of the USAF Aerospace Research Pilot School, with a model of the [[North American X-15]], 1959.]]
Yeager was foremost a fighter pilot and held several squadron and wing commands. From 1954 to 1957, he commanded the [[North American F-86 Sabre|F-86H Sabre]]-equipped 417th Fighter-Bomber Squadron (50th Fighter-Bomber Wing) at [[Frankfurt-Hahn Airport|Hahn AB]], [[West Germany]], and Toul-Rosieres Air Base, [[France]]; and from 1957 to 1960 the [[North American F-100 Super Sabre|F-100D Super Sabre]]-equipped [[1st Fighter Squadron (United States)|1st Fighter Day Squadron]] <!-- (later, while still under Yeager's command, re-designated the 306th Tactical Fighter Squadron) -->at [[George Air Force Base]], California, and [[Morón Air Base]], [[Spain]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Young|first=James|title=Squadron Leader|url=https://www.chuckyeager.com/1954-1961-squadron-leader|access-date=December 8, 2020|website=ChuckYeager.com|archive-date=December 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201208060758/https://www.chuckyeager.com/1954-1961-squadron-leader|url-status=dead}}</ref>

He was a full colonel in 1962,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chuckyeager.com/1961-1975-to-new-heights|title=Yeager (n.d.). To New Heights: 1961–1975|access-date=September 5, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130926221739/http://www.chuckyeager.com/1961-1975-to-new-heights|archive-date=September 26, 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> after completion of a year's studies and final thesis on [[STOL]] aircraft<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fairchild-mil.libguides.com/ld.php?content_id=42077711|title=The Ability of a STOL Fighter to Perform the Mission of Tactical Air Forces (1961)|access-date=December 8, 2020|page=3}}</ref> at the [[Air War College]]. He became the first commandant of the [[U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School|USAF Aerospace Research Pilot School]], which produced [[astronaut]]s for [[NASA]] and the [[United States Air Force|USAF]], after its redesignation from the USAF Flight Test Pilot School. He had only a high school education, so he was not eligible to become an astronaut like those he trained. In April 1962, Yeager made his only flight with [[Neil Armstrong]]. Their job, flying a [[T-33]], was to evaluate Smith Ranch Dry Lake in [[Nevada]] for use as an emergency landing site for the [[North American X-15]].<ref name="yeagerbio_6"/>

In his autobiography, he wrote that he knew the lake bed was unsuitable for landings after recent rains, but Armstrong insisted on flying out anyway. As Armstrong suggested that they do a [[Touch-and-go landing|touch-and-go]], Yeager advised against it, telling him "You may touch, but you ain't gonna go!"  When Armstrong did touch down, the wheels became stuck in the mud, bringing the plane to a sudden stop and provoking Yeager to fits of laughter. They had to wait for rescue.<ref name="yeagerbio_6"/>

Yeager's participation in the test pilot training program for [[NASA]] included controversial behavior. Yeager reportedly did not believe that [[Ed Dwight]], the first African American pilot admitted into the program, should be a part of it. In the 2019 documentary series ''[[Chasing the Moon (2019 film)|Chasing the Moon]]'', the filmmakers made the claim that Yeager instructed staff and participants at the school that "Washington is trying to cram the nigger down our throats. [President] [[John F. Kennedy|Kennedy]] is using this to make 'racial equality,' so do not speak to him, do not socialize with him, do not drink with him, do not invite him over to your house, and in six months he'll be gone."<ref>{{cite AV media |people=Stone, Robert (Writer, Director, Producer) |year=2019 |title=Chasing The Moon Episode 1|trans-title=It Took Millions of Steps to Make One Giant Leap |language=English |type=DVD |time=1:18:05 |publisher=WGBH Educational Foundation |id=AE61703 |isbn=9781531709419 |oclc=1531709419 }}</ref><ref name="The New York Times">{{cite news |last1=Brown |first1=Walter J. |title=Ed Dwight Was Set to Be the First Black Astronaut. Here's Why That Never Happened. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/16/us/ed-dwight-was-set-to-be-the-first-black-astronaut-heres-why-that-never-happened.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/16/us/ed-dwight-was-set-to-be-the-first-black-astronaut-heres-why-that-never-happened.html |archive-date=January 1, 2022 |url-access=limited |access-date=February 20, 2021 |work=[[The New York Times]] |agency=The New York Times Company |date=July 16, 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cbignore}}</ref>  In his autobiography, Dwight details how Yeager's leadership led to discriminatory treatment throughout his training at Edwards Air Force Base.<ref>{{cite book|publisher=Ed Dwight Studios, Inc.|title=Soaring on the Wings of a Dream: The Struggles & Adventures of the "First Black Astronaut" Candidate"|pages=213–219|author=Ed Dwight|year=2009 |isbn=9780984149506}}</ref>

Between December 1963 and January 1964, Yeager completed five flights in the [[NASA M2-F1]] [[lifting body]]. An accident during a [[Lockheed NF-104A#Third NF-104A|December 1963 test flight]] in one of the school's [[Lockheed NF-104A|NF-104s]] resulted in serious injuries. After climbing to a near-record altitude, the plane's controls became ineffective, and it entered a [[Flat spin (aviation)|flat spin]]. After several turns, and an altitude loss of approximately 95,000 feet, Yeager ejected from the plane. During the ejection, the seat straps released normally, but the seat base slammed into Yeager, with the still-hot rocket motor breaking his helmet's plastic faceplate and causing his emergency oxygen supply to catch fire. The resulting burns to his face required extensive and agonizing medical care.  This was Yeager's last attempt at setting test-flying records due to his apparent inability to fly the required flight profiles for optimum climb performance.<ref name=Crash>{{cite web|url=http://www.check-six.com/Crash_Sites/NF-104A_crash_site.htm|title=The Crash of Chuck Yeager's NF-104A|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041207150655/http://www.check-six.com/Crash_Sites/NF-104A_crash_site.htm|archive-date=December 7, 2004|via=Check-Six.com|date=December 10, 1963}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thisdayinaviation.com/10-december-1963/|title=This Day In Aviation, 10 December 1963|via=Thisdayinaviation.com|date=December 10, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kalimera.org/nf104/stories/stories_16.html|title=Yeager's View, In Review|via=Kalimera.org|date=}}</ref>{{efn|The movie ''The Right Stuff'' implies that Yeager took the NF-104 on a spur-of-the-moment, unauthorized flight. In reality, it was a part of a scheduled series of test flights.}}

In 1966, Yeager took command of the [[405th Air Expeditionary Wing|405th Tactical Fighter Wing]] at [[Clark Air Base]], the [[Philippines]], whose squadrons were deployed on rotational temporary duty (TDY) in [[South Vietnam]] and elsewhere in Southeast Asia. There he flew 127 missions. In February 1968, Yeager was assigned command of the [[4th Fighter Wing|4th Tactical Fighter Wing]] at [[Seymour Johnson Air Force Base]], [[North Carolina]], and led the [[McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II]] wing in [[South Korea]] during the [[USS Pueblo (AGER-2)|''Pueblo'' crisis]].<ref name="af-retirement"/>

Yeager was promoted to [[Brigadier general (United States)|brigadier general]] and was assigned in July 1969 as the vice-commander of the [[Seventeenth Air Force]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Young|first=James|title=To New Heights|url=https://www.chuckyeager.com/1961-1975-to-new-heights|access-date=December 8, 2020|website=chuckyeager.com|archive-date=December 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201208040722/http://www.chuckyeager.com/1961-1975-to-new-heights|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===== Deputation to Pakistan =====
From 1971 to 1973, at the behest of Ambassador [[Joseph Farland]], Yeager was assigned as the [[Air Attache]] in [[Pakistan]] to advise the [[Pakistan Air Force]] which was led by [[Abdur Rahim Khan]] (the first Pakistani to break the sound barrier).<ref name="hali">{{cite web|url=https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/758220-chuck-yeager-the-flying-legend-breaks-the-final-barrier|title=Chuck Yeager — the flying legend — breaks the final barrier|website=International, TheNews.com.pk|author=Group Captain (R) Sultan Mehmood Hali|date=December 14, 2020}}</ref><ref name="yeagerbio_391">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p=391|ps=.}}</ref><ref name="dp">{{cite web|url=https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/29-Jun-2015/charles-yeager-and-pakistan-air-force |website=DailyPakistan.com.pk|title=Charles Yeager and Pakistan Air Force|author=Sarfaraz Ali|date=June 29, 2015}}</ref> He arrived in Pakistan at a time when tensions with India were at a high level. One of Yeager's jobs during this time was to assist Pakistani technicians in installing [[AIM-9 Sidewinder]]s on PAF's [[Shenyang F-6]] fighters. He also had a keen interest in interacting with PAF personnel from [[List of Pakistan Air Force squadrons|various Pakistani Squadrons]] and helping them develop [[Air combat manoeuvring|combat tactics]].<ref name="dp"/> 

In one instance in 1972, while visiting the [[No. 15 Squadron (Pakistan Air Force)|No. 15 Squadron "Cobras"]] at [[Peshawar Airbase]], the Squadron's [[Officer commanding|OC]] [[8-Pass Charlie|Wing Commander Najeeb Khan]] escorted him to [[K2]] in a pair of [[F-86F]]s after Yeager requested a visit to the second highest mountain on Earth.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://www.capitolhillbooks-dc.com/pages/books/13153/hussaini-tanvir-m-ahmed-jamal-a-khan-text-intro/paf-over-the-years|title=PAF over the Years|page=95|chapter=Trauma & Reconstruction (1971-1980)|author=Group Captain (R) Husseini & Pakistan Air Force|publisher=Directorate of Media Affairs, Pakistan Air Force|edition=Revised|archive-date=May 31, 2023|access-date=October 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230531035031/https://www.capitolhillbooks-dc.com/pages/books/13153/hussaini-tanvir-m-ahmed-jamal-a-khan-text-intro/paf-over-the-years|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite tweet|url=https://twitter.com/GenChuckYeager/status/1049753383404371968|publisher=Chuck Yeager|title=Chuck's accounts on his visit to the K-2 in an F-86|number=1049753383404371968|user=GenChuckYeager}}</ref> After [[India–Pakistan war of 1971|hostilities broke out in 1971]], he decided to stay in [[West Pakistan]] and continued overseeing the PAF's operations.<ref name="hali"/><ref name="dp"/> Yeager recalled "the Pakistanis whipped the Indians' asses in the sky... the Pakistanis scored a three-to-one kill ratio, knocking out 102 Russian-made Indian jets and losing 34 airplanes of their own".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://casstt.com/post/pakistan-air-force-undoubtedly-second-to-none/492|website=[[Centre for Aerospace and Security Studies]]|title=Pakistan Air Force: Undoubtedly 'Second to None'!|author=Hassan Tahir |date=October 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220813213947/https://casstt.com/post/pakistan-air-force-undoubtedly-second-to-none/492|archive-date=August 13, 2022}}</ref> 

During the war, he flew around the western front in a [[helicopter]] documenting wreckages of [[Indian Air Force|Indian aircraft]] of Soviet origin, which included [[Sukhoi Su-7]]s and [[MiG-21]]s. These aircraft were transported to the [[United States]] after the war for analysis.<ref name="hali"/><ref name="dp"/><ref name="yeager">{{cite book|url=https://a.co/d/5orMgpD|via=Amazon.com|title=Yeager: An Autobiography|author=Chuck Yeager}}</ref> Yeager also flew around in his [[Beechcraft Queen Air]], a small passenger aircraft that was assigned to him by the [[The Pentagon|Pentagon]], picking up shot-down Indian fighter pilots.<ref name="dp"/><ref>{{cite tweet|url=https://twitter.com/GenChuckYeager/status/1103121403971321856|title=Chuck's Beechcraft Queen Air|user=GenChuckYeager|number=1103121403971321856}}</ref> The Beechcraft was later destroyed during an air raid by the IAF at Chaklala airbase.<ref name=theweek.in2020>{{cite web|url=https://www.theweek.in/news/world/2020/12/08/americas-greatest-pilot-chuck-yeager-1st-man-to-fly-over-speed-of-sound-dies.html|title='America's greatest pilot': Chuck Yeager, 1st man to fly over speed of sound, dies|website=theweek.in|date=December 8, 2020}}</ref><ref name="yeagerbio_398">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p=398|ps=.}}</ref> 

Edward C. Ingraham, a U.S. diplomat who had served as political counselor to Ambassador [[Joseph S. Farland|Farland]] in [[Islamabad]], recalled this incident in the ''[[Washington Monthly]]'' of October 1985: "After Yeager's [[Beechcraft]] was destroyed during an Indian air raid, he raged to his cowering colleagues that the Indian pilot had been specifically instructed by [[Indira Gandhi]] to blast his plane. 'It was', he later wrote, 'the Indian way of giving [[Uncle Sam]] the finger'".<ref>{{cite magazine|date=October 1985|title=The Right Stuff in the Wrong Place|magazine=Washington Monthly}}</ref> Yeager was incensed over the incident and demanded U.S. retaliation.<ref name="hali" /><ref>{{cite book|publisher=Oxford University|title=The Gold Bird: Pakistan and Its Air Force – observations of a Pilot|pages=230–250|author=Mansoor Shah|year=2002}}</ref> It was later revealed that it was then Indian Navy pilot Lieutenant (later Admiral) [[Arun Prakash]] who bombed Chuck Yeager's personal Beechcraft Queen Air at Pakistan's [[Chaklala Airbase]] using a [[Hawker Hunter]] fighter aircraft with Admiral Prakash later writing and confirming it as a bold move against American involvement.<ref>{{cite news
 |title=‘Shooting USAF plane brought Seventh Fleet to Bay of Bengal in 1971
 |work=TwoCircles.net
 |agency=IANS
 |date=25 July 2007
 |url=https://twocircles.net/2007jul25/shooting_usaf_plane_brought_seventh_fleet_bay_bengal_1971.html_0
 |access-date=7 January 2026
}}</ref><ref>{{cite news
 |title=An Indian Pilot Who Destroyed Chuck Yaeger’s Aircraft
 |work=Indian Defence News
 |date=11 December 2020
 |url=https://www.indiandefensenews.in/2020/12/an-indian-pilot-who-destroyed-chuck.html
 |access-date=7 January 2026
}}</ref>

=== Post-retirement and in popular culture ===
[[File:ChuckYeager.jpeg|thumb|upright|right|Brigadier General Yeager in 2000]]
On March 1, 1975, Yeager retired from the Air Force at [[Norton Air Force Base]], California.<ref name="af-retirement">{{cite web
|url=https://www.af.mil/About-Us/Biographies/Display/Article/105165/charles-e-chuck-yeager/|title=Brigadier General Charles "Chuck" Yeager |publisher=af.mil|access-date=December 8, 2020}}</ref>

Yeager made a [[cameo appearance]] in the movie ''[[The Right Stuff (film)|The Right Stuff]]'' (1983). He played "Fred", a bartender at [[Happy Bottom Riding Club|"Pancho's Place"]], which was most appropriate, because he said, "if all the hours were ever totaled, I reckon I spent more time at her place than in a cockpit over those years".<ref>{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p=172|ps=.}}</ref> [[Sam Shepard]] portrayed Yeager in the film, which chronicles in part his famous 1947 record-breaking flight.<ref name="Canby">{{cite news|last=Canby|first=Vincent|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9E05E1DC123BF932A15753C1A965948260&scp=80&sq=%22The+Right+Stuff%22&st=nyt |title=Film: 'Right Stuff', On Astronauts|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201115205705/https://www.nytimes.com/1983/10/21/movies/film-right-stuff-on-astronauts.html|archive-date=November 15, 2020 |newspaper=The New York Times|date=October 21, 1983|access-date=December 29, 2008}}</ref>

Yeager has been referenced several times in the shared ''[[Star Trek]]'' universe, including having a namesake fictional type of starship, a dangerous starship [[formation flying|formation]]-maneuver named after him called the "Yeager Loop" (most notably mentioned in the ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]'' episode "[[The First Duty]]"), and appearing in archival footage within the opening title sequence for the series ''[[Star Trek: Enterprise]]'' (2001–2005). For ''Enterprise'', executive producer [[Rick Berman]] said that he envisaged the lead character, Captain [[Jonathan Archer]], as being "halfway between Chuck Yeager and [[Han Solo]]".<ref>{{cite journal |last=Spelling|first=Ian|title=The Long Trek|journal=Starlog|date=November 2001|volume=1|issue=292|pages=67–69 |url = https://archive.org/stream/starlog_magazine-292/292#page/n66/mode/1up |access-date=September 14, 2021}}</ref>

For several years in the 1980s, Yeager was connected to [[General Motors]], publicizing [[ACDelco]], the company's [[automotive parts]] division.<ref name="yeagerbio_418">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p=418|ps=.}}</ref> In 1986, he was invited to drive the [[Chevrolet Corvette]] [[pace car]] for the [[1986 Indianapolis 500|70th running of the Indianapolis 500]]. In [[1988 Indianapolis 500|1988]], Yeager was again invited to drive the pace car, this time at the wheel of an [[Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme]]. In 1986, President Reagan appointed Yeager to the [[Rogers Commission]] that investigated the explosion of the [[Space Shuttle Challenger|Space Shuttle ''Challenger'']].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.456fis.org/CHUCK_YEAGER_BIOGRAPHY.htm|title=Brigadier General Charles E. Yeager|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724210711/http://www.456fis.org/CHUCK_YEAGER_BIOGRAPHY.htm|archive-date=July 24, 2011|publisher=The 456th Fighter Interceptor Squadron|url-status=usurped|access-date=December 8, 2010}}</ref>

During this time, Yeager also served as a technical adviser for three Electronic Arts [[flight simulator]] video games. The games include ''[[Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer]]'', ''Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer 2.0'', and ''[[Chuck Yeager's Air Combat]]''. The game manuals feature quotes and anecdotes from Yeager and were well received by players. Missions feature several of Yeager's accomplishments and let players challenge his records. ''Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer'' was Electronic Art's top-selling game for 1987.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mobygames.com/game/chuck-yeagers-advanced-flight-simulator|publisher=Moby Games|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170731194151/http://www.mobygames.com/game/chuck-yeagers-advanced-flight-simulator|archive-date=July 31, 2017 |title=''Chuck Yeager's Advanced Flight Trainer''|access-date=June 9, 2017}}</ref>

In 2009, Yeager participated in the documentary ''[[The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club]]'', a profile of his friend [[Pancho Barnes]]. The documentary was screened at film festivals, aired on public television in the United States, and won an [[Emmy Award]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legendofpanchobarnes.com/|title=The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club|access-date=August 3, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130523111947/http://www.legendofpanchobarnes.com/|archive-date=May 23, 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>

On October 14, 1997, on the 50th anniversary of his historic flight past Mach 1, he flew a new ''Glamorous Glennis III'', an [[McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle|F-15D Eagle]], past Mach 1.<ref>{{cite web |last=Rogers|first=Keith|date=October 12, 2012|title=Famous pilot Yeager re-enacting right stuff 65 years later|url=https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/military/famous-pilot-yeager-re-enacting-right-stuff-65-years-later/|access-date=December 8, 2020|newspaper=Las Vegas Review-Journal}}</ref> The chase plane for the flight was an [[General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon|F-16 Fighting Falcon]] piloted by [[Bob Hoover]], a longtime test, fighter, and [[aerobatic]] pilot who had been Yeager's wingman for the first supersonic flight.<ref>{{cite news|date=January 1998|title=Yeager's Encore|magazine=Air Force Magazine |url=https://www.airforcemag.com/PDF/MagazineArchive/Magazine%20Documents/1998/January%201998/0198yeager.pdf|access-date=December 8, 2020}}</ref> At the end of his speech to the crowd in 1997, Yeager concluded, "All that I am ... I owe to the Air Force".<ref>{{cite news|last=Pasztor|first=Andy|date=December 8, 2020|title=Chuck Yeager, Pioneer of Supersonic Flight, Dies at Age 97|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/chuck-yeager-pioneer-of-supersonic-flight-dies-at-age-97-11607404925|access-date=December 8, 2020|issn=0099-9660}}</ref> Later that month, he was the recipient of the [[Tony Jannus Award]] for his achievements.<ref>{{cite web|last=Deam|first=Jenny|date=October 1, 2005|title=Chuck Yeager is honored by Tuskegee Airman|url=https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1997/09/27/chuck-yeager-is-honored-by-tuskegee-airman/|access-date=December 8, 2020|newspaper=Tampa Bay Times}}</ref>

On October 14, 2012, on the 65th anniversary of breaking the sound barrier, Yeager did it again at the age of 89, flying as co-pilot in a [[McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle]] piloted by Captain David Vincent out of [[Nellis Air Force Base]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Rogers|first=Keith|url=https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/military/famous-pilot-yeager-re-enacting-right-stuff-65-years-later/|title=Famous pilot Yeager re-enacting right stuff 65 years later|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180910094804/https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/military/famous-pilot-yeager-re-enacting-right-stuff-65-years-later/|archive-date=September 10, 2018|newspaper=Las Vegas Review-Journal|date=October 12, 2012}}</ref>

== Awards and decorations ==
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Yeager congressional silver medal.jpg|thumb|right|The Special Congressional Silver Medal was awarded to Yeager in 1976.]] -->
In 1973, Yeager was inducted into the [[National Aviation Hall of Fame]], arguably aviation's highest honor. In 1974, Yeager received the Golden Plate Award of the [[Academy of Achievement|American Academy of Achievement]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement|website=achievement.org|publisher=American Academy of Achievement|url=https://achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/#science-exploration}}</ref> In December 1975, the [[United States Congress|U.S. Congress]] awarded Yeager a silver medal "equivalent to a noncombat [[Medal of Honor]] ... for contributing immeasurably to aerospace science by risking his life in piloting the X-1 research airplane faster than the speed of sound on October 14, 1947". President [[Gerald Ford]] presented the medal to Yeager in a ceremony at the [[White House]] on December 8, 1976.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Page:United_States_Statutes_at_Large_Volume_89.djvu/1094|title=Public Law 94-179|work=United States Statutes|access-date=September 10, 2012|via=Wikisource}}</ref>{{refn|This is apparently a unique award, as the law that created it states it is equivalent to a noncombat Medal of Honor. It is referred to as a Special Congressional Silver Medal in the President's Daily Diary, which also has a list of ceremony attendees.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov/library/document/0036/pdd761208.pdf |date=December 8, 1976|title=The Daily Diary of President Gerald R. Ford: December 8, 1976|page=2|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120920232032/http://www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov/library/document/0036/pdd761208.pdf|archive-date=September 20, 2012|publisher=The White House|via=Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library|access-date=September 10, 2012}}</ref>|group=lower-alpha}}

Yeager never attended college and was often modest about his background, but is considered by many, including ''Flying Magazine'', the California Hall of Fame, the State of West Virginia, National Aviation Hall of Fame, a few U.S. presidents, and the United States Army Air Force, to be one of the greatest pilots of all time. ''[[Air & Space/Smithsonian]]'' magazine ranked him the fifth greatest pilot of all time in 2003.<ref name=Air&Space>{{cite web| url = https://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/10-great-pilots-4026745/| title = "10 All-Time Great Pilots".}} ''Air & Space''</ref> Regardless of his lack of higher education, West Virginia's [[Marshall University]] named its highest academic scholarship the [[Society of Yeager Scholars]] in his honor. He was the chairman of [[Experimental Aircraft Association]] (EAA)'s [[Young Eagles|Young Eagle Program]] from 1994 to 2004, and was named the program's chairman emeritus.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Ford|first=Harrison|title=Freedom and Responsibility|magazine=Sport Aviation|date=September 2010}}</ref>

In 1966, Yeager was inducted into the [[International Air & Space Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite book|editor-last=Sprekelmeyer|editor-first=Linda|title=These We Honor: The International Aerospace Hall of Fame |publisher=Donning|year=2006|isbn=978-1-57864-397-4}}</ref> He was inducted into the [[International Space Hall of Fame]] in 1981.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/29986892/albuquerque_journal/|title=Hall to Induct Seven Space Pioneers|newspaper=Albuquerque Journal|date=September 27, 1981|page=53|last1=Harbert|first1=Nancy |via=Newspapers.com|access-date=March 27, 2019}}</ref> He was inducted into the [[Aerospace Walk of Honor]] 1990 inaugural class.<ref name=ind90>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/36299122/the_los_angeles_times/|title=Ground-Level Monuments Honor Heroes of the Air|last1=Kaplan|first1=Tracey|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=September 23, 1990 |page=840|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>

[[File:Chuck Yeager monument Nevada County Airport.jpg|thumb|Chuck Yeager monument at the [[Nevada County Airport]] near [[Grass Valley, California]]]]

[[Yeager Airport]] in [[Charleston, West Virginia]], is named in his honor. The [[Interstate 64 in West Virginia|Interstate 64]]/[[Interstate 77 in West Virginia|Interstate 77]] bridge over the [[Kanawha River]] in Charleston is named in his honor. He also flew directly under the Kanawha Bridge and West Virginia named it the Chuck E. Yeager Bridge. On October 19, 2006, the state of [[West Virginia]] also honored Yeager with a marker along [[Corridor G (Appalachian Development Highway System)|Corridor G]] (part of [[U.S. Route 119 in West Virginia|U.S. Highway 119]]) in his home [[Lincoln County, West Virginia|Lincoln County]], and also renamed part of it the ''Yeager Highway''.<ref name=YeagerComesHome>{{cite news|url=http://www.wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=15274|title=Yeager Comes Home |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061110171342/http://www.wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=15274|archive-date=November 10, 2006|publisher=WOWK-TV|date=August 19, 2006}}</ref>

Yeager was an honorary board member of the humanitarian organization [[Wings of Hope (charity)|Wings of Hope]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://wings-of-hope.org|title=Chuck Yeager|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151218201438/http://www.wings-of-hope.org/|archive-date=December 18, 2015|publisher=Wings of Hope|access-date=December 8, 2010}}</ref> On August 25, 2009, Governor [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]] and [[Maria Shriver]] announced that Yeager would be one of 13 [[California Hall of Fame]] inductees in [[The California Museum]]'s yearlong exhibit. The induction ceremony was on December 1, 2009, in [[Sacramento, California]]. ''[[Flying Magazine]]'' ranked Yeager number 5 on its 2013 list of The 51 Heroes of Aviation; for many years, he was the highest-ranked living person on the list.<ref name=FlyingMag>{{cite web|url=http://www.flyingmag.com/photo-gallery/photos/51-heroes-aviation?pnid=41840|title=Chuck Yeager|work=Flying Magazine's 51 Heroes of Aviation|date=August 19, 2013|access-date=April 14, 2015|archive-date=April 20, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420232501/https://www.flyingmag.com/photo-gallery/photos/51-heroes-aviation/?pnid=41840|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The [[Civil Air Patrol]], the volunteer auxiliary of the [[United States Air Force|USAF]], awards the Charles E. "Chuck" Yeager Award to its senior members as part of its Aerospace Education program.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://members.gocivilairpatrol.com/aerospace_education/awards/yeager-award/|title=Yeager Award|publisher=Civil Air Patrol|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131104044104/http://members.gocivilairpatrol.com/aerospace_education/awards/yeager-award/|archive-date=November 4, 2013|access-date=July 10, 2014}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan=2 |'''Badges, patches and tabs'''
|-
|[[File:USAF Command Pilot Wings.svg|100px]]
|[[United States Aviator Badge|U.S. Air Force Command Pilot Badge]]
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan=2 |'''Personal decorations'''
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|name=Air Force Distinguished Service ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Air Force Distinguished Service Medal]] (retirement award in 1975)
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|name=U.S. Army Distinguished Service Medal ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Distinguished Service Medal (U.S. Army)|Distinguished Service Medal]] (Army design awarded in 1954)
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=1|type=oak|name=Silver Star Medal ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Silver Star]] with bronze [[oak leaf cluster]] (for shooting down five Messerschmitt Bf 109s in one day<ref name="yeagerbio_73">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p= 73|ps=.}}</ref>)
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=1|type=oak|name=Legion of Merit ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Legion of Merit]] with bronze oak leaf cluster
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=2|type=oak|name=Distinguished Flying Cross ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]] with two bronze oak leaf clusters (for a Messerschmitt Me 262 kill<ref name="yeagerbio_76">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|p= 76|ps=.}}</ref> and first to break the sound barrier)
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|name=Bronze Star Medal ribbon with "V" device, 1st award|width=60}}
|[[Bronze Star Medal]] with bronze [[valor device]] (for helping rescue a fellow airman from Occupied France<ref name="yeagerbio_45" />)
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|name=Purple Heart ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Purple Heart]]
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=10|type=oak|name=Air Medal ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Air Medal]] with two silver oak leaf clusters
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|name=Air and Space Commendation Medal ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Air Force Commendation Medal]]
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|ribbon=Presidential Medal of Freedom (ribbon).svg|width=60}}
|[[Presidential Medal of Freedom]]
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan=2 |'''Unit awards'''
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=1|type=oak|ribbon=AF Presidential Unit Citation Ribbon.png|width=60}}
|[[Presidential Unit Citation (United States)|Presidential Unit Citation]] with bronze oak leaf cluster
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|name=Outstanding Unit ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Outstanding Unit Award|Air Force Outstanding Unit Award]]
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan=2 |'''Campaign and service medals'''
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|name=American Defense Service Medal ribbon|width=60}}
|[[American Defense Service Medal]]
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|name=American Campaign Medal ribbon|width=60}}
|[[American Campaign Medal]]
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=6|type=service-star|name=European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign ribbon|width=60}}
|[[European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal]] with silver and one bronze [[service star]]
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|name=World War II Victory Medal ribbon|width=60}}
|[[World War II Victory Medal (United States)|World War II Victory Medal]]
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|name=Army of Occupation ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Army of Occupation Medal]] with "Germany" clasp
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|name=National Defense Service Medal ribbon, 2nd award|width=60}}
|[[National Defense Service Medal]] with star
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|name=Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal]]
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|ribbon=Vietnam Service Ribbon (With Two Bronze Stars).jpg|width=60}}
|[[Vietnam Service Medal]] with two campaign stars
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=6|type=oak|name=Air Force Longevity Service ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Air Force Longevity Service Ribbon]] with one silver and one bronze oak leaf clusters
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|name=USAF Marksmanship ribbon|width=60}}
|[[Marksmanship Ribbon|Air Force Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon]]
|-
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan=2 |'''Foreign awards'''
|-
|[[File:Tong-il Security Medal Ribbon.svg|60px]]
|Tongil Medal of the [[Order of National Security Merit|South Korean Order of National Security Merit]]
|-
|[[File:Legion Honneur Chevalier ribbon.svg|60px]]
|Chevalier of the [[French Legion of Honour]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chuckyeager.com/legion-of-honor-2003|title=Legion Of Honor Award|date=July 18, 2003|website=chuckyeager.com |access-date=August 30, 2022}}</ref>
|-
|[[File:Vietnam gallantry cross unit award-3d.svg|60px]]
|[[Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation]]
|-
|[[File:Vietnam Campaign Medal ribbon with 60- clasp.svg|60px]]
|[[Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal]]
|}

=== Other achievements ===
[[File:CAP Yeager Cadet Sq Emblem.gif|alt=Gen Chuck Yeager Cadet Squadron (SER-FL-237)|thumb|Old emblem of the General Chuck Yeager Cadet Squadron (formerly of the [[Civil Air Patrol]])]]
* 1940–1949 – [[Harmon Trophy]]: Citation of Honorable Mention<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.trumanlibrary.org/calendar/main.php?currYear=1950&currMonth=11&currDay=2| title = Harry S. Truman – The President's Day, November 2, 1950}}</ref>
* 1947 – [[Collier Trophy]] and [[Mackay Trophy]], for breaking the sound barrier for the first time.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/36575520/the_semiweekly_spokesmanreview/|title=Three to Share Collier Trophy|agency=Associated Press|newspaper=The Semi-Weekly Spokesman-Review|date=December 15, 1948|page=15|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>[http://www.naa.aero/html/awards/index.cfm?cmsid=70 NAA list of Mackay Trophy Winners] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070228080436/http://www.naa.aero/html/awards/index.cfm?cmsid=70|date=February 28, 2007}}</ref>
* 1953 – [[Harmon Trophy]]<ref>{{cite news| url = https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0F10FC3B5E107B93C7A9178CD85F418585F9| title = Harmon Prizes go for 2 Air "Firsts"; Vertical-Flight Test Pilot and Airship Endurance Captain Are 1955 Winners, ''The New York Times'', July 5, 1955| newspaper = The New York Times| date = July 5, 1955}}</ref>
* 1976 – [[Congressional Silver Medal]]<ref name="yeagerbio_413-414">{{harvp|Yeager|Janos|1985|pp=413–414|ps=.}}</ref>

== Dates of rank ==
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="background:white"
! scope="col" | Insignia
! scope="col" | Rank
! scope="col" | Service and Component
! scope="col" | Date
|-
|align="center" |no insignia at the time
!scope="row" | [[Private (rank)|Private]]
| [[United States Army]]
Regular Army<br/>([[United States Army Air Corps|Army Air Corps]])
| September 12, 1941<ref name="1948_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |[[File:US Army WWII PFC.svg|35px]]<br/>[[File:US Army WWII CPL.svg|35px]]
! scope="row" | [[Private first class]] to [[corporal]]
| United States Army
Regular Army<br/>([[United States Army Air Forces|Army Air Forces]])
| 1941 to March 9, 1943<ref name="1948_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |[[File:US-Army-Flight Officer (1941).svg|15px]]
! scope="row" | [[Flight officer]]
| United States Army
[[Army of the United States]]<br/>(Army Air Forces)
| March 10, 1943<ref name="1948_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |[[File:US-O1 insignia.svg|14px]]
! scope="row" | [[Second lieutenant#United States|Second lieutenant]]
| United States Army
Army of the United States<br/>(Army Air Forces)
| July 6, 1944<ref name="1948_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |[[File:US-O2 insignia.svg|15px]]
! scope="row" | [[First lieutenant#United States|First lieutenant]]
| United States Army
Army of the United States<br/>(Army Air Forces)
| September 4, 1944<ref name="1948_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |[[File:US-O3 insignia.svg|35px]]
! scope="row" | [[Captain (United States O-3)|Captain]]
| United States Army
Army of the United States<br/>(Army Air Forces)
| October 24, 1944<ref name="1948_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |[[File:US-O1 insignia.svg|14px]]
! scope="row" | Second lieutenant
| United States Army
Regular Army<br/>(Army Air Forces)
| February 10, 1947<br/>(accepted February 25, 1947, rank from July 6, 1944)<ref name="1948_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |[[File:US-O2 insignia.svg|15px]]
! scope="row" | First lieutenant
| United States Army
Regular Army<br/>(Army Air Forces)
| July 6, 1947<ref name="1948_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |{{Dodseal|USAFO3|133}}
! scope="row" | Captain
| [[United States Air Force]] || July 6, 1951<ref name="1954_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |{{Dodseal|USAFO4|133}}
! scope="row" | [[Major (United States)|Major]]
| United States Air Force || February 15, 1951 (temporary)<ref name="1954_Register"/><br/>July 6, 1958 (permanent)<ref name="1959_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |{{Dodseal|USAFO5|133}}
! scope="row" | [[Lieutenant colonel (United States)|Lieutenant colonel]]
| United States Air Force || March 22, 1956 (temporary)<ref name="1958_Register"/><br/>August 1, 1964 (permanent)<ref name="1965_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |{{Dodseal|USAFO6|133}}
! scope="row" | [[Colonel (United States)|Colonel]]
| United States Air Force || March 14, 1961 (temporary)<ref name="1963_Register"/><br/>September 20, 1967 (permanent)<ref name="1969_Register"/>
|-
|align="center" |{{Dodseal|USAFO7|133}}
! scope="row" | [[Brigadier general (United States)|Brigadier general]]
| United States Air Force || June 22, 1969
|-
|}
<ref name="1948_Register">{{cite book|date=1948|title=Official Army and Air Force Register (Volume II)|location=Washington, D.C.|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |url=https://archive.org/details/officialarmyregi48unit/page/2018/mode/2up|pages=2019}}</ref><ref name="1954_Register">{{cite book|date=1954|title=Air Force Register|location=Washington, D.C.|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |url=https://archive.org/details/airforceregister1954wash/page/330/mode/2up|pages=330}}</ref><ref name="1958_Register">{{cite book|date=1958|title=Air Force Register|location=Washington, D.C.|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |url=https://archive.org/details/airforceregister1958wash/page/304/mode/2up|pages=304}}</ref><ref name="1959_Register">{{cite book|date=1959|title=Air Force Register|location=Washington, D.C.|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |url=https://archive.org/details/airforceregister1959wash/page/460/mode/2up|pages=461}}</ref><ref name="1963_Register">{{cite book|date=1963|title=Air Force Register|location=Washington, D.C.|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |url=https://archive.org/details/airforceregister1963wash/page/578/mode/2up|pages=579}}</ref><ref name="1965_Register">{{cite book|date=1965|title=Air Force Register|location=Washington, D.C.|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office|pages=628}}</ref><ref name="1969_Register">{{cite book|date=1969|title=Air Force Register|location=Washington, D.C.|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office|pages=1357}}</ref>

==Aerial victory credits==
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:auto; width:600px;"
|- style="color:blue;"
! style="background:#39f;"|Date !! style="background:#39f;"|# !! style="background:#39f;"|Type !! style="background:#39f;"|Location !! style="background:#39f;"|Aircraft flown !! style="background:#39f;"|Unit Assigned
|-
|-style="background: #eeeeee;"
|March 4, 1944||align=center|1 ||align=center|[[Messerschmitt Bf 109]]||align=center|[[Kassel]], Germany||align=center|P-51||align=center|363 FS, 357 FG
|-
|September 13, 1944||align=center|0.5 ||align=center|Bf 109||align=center|Kassel, Germany||align=center|P-51||align=center|363 FS, 357 FG
|-
|-style="background: #eeeeee;"
|October 12, 1944||align=center|5 ||align=center|Bf 109||align=center|[[Hanover]], Germany||align=center|P-51||align=center|363 FS, 357 FG
|-
|November 6, 1944||align=center|1 ||align=center|[[Messerschmitt Me 262]]||align=center|Assen, Germany||align=center|P-51||align=center|363 FS, 357 FG
|-style="background: #eeeeee;"
|November 27, 1944||align=center|4 ||align=center|[[Focke-Wulf Fw 190]]||align=center|[[Magdeburg]], Germany||align=center|P-51||align=center|363 FS, 357 FG<ref>Air Force Historical Study 85: USAF Credits for the Destruction of Enemy Aircraft, World War II</ref>
|}

== Personal life ==
[[File:Chuck Yeager commemorates historic flight 121014-F-HZ730-027.jpg|thumb|right|On October 14, 2012, Yeager co-piloted a new ''Glamorous Glennis III'' [[McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle|F-15D Eagle]] to commemorate the 65th anniversary of his historic flight.]]
On February 26, 1945, Yeager married Glennis Dickhouse. The couple had four children (Susan, Don, Mickey, and Sharon).<ref name="Tresniowski">{{cite magazine|last=Tresniowski|first=Alex|url=http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20149499,00.html|title=The Wife Stuff: Feuds, Trials & Lawsuits, Bills, Bills, Bills, Chuck Yeager|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110809080730/http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20149499,00.html|archive-date=August 9, 2011|magazine=People (American magazine)|date=March 8, 2004|access-date=September 26, 2011}}</ref> Glennis Yeager died on December 22, 1990 after two bouts of [[ovarian cancer]], predeceasing her husband by 30 years.<ref name="OfficialSiteTheMan" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=A TEST PILOT'S FAMILY CRASHES AND BURNS |url=https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2004/07/11/a-test-pilot-s-family-crashes-and-burns/ |access-date=2026-04-11 |website=Tampa Bay Times |language=en}}</ref> Yeager named his plane after his wife, Glennis, as a good-luck charm: "You're my good-luck charm, hon. Any airplane I name after you always brings me home."<ref>{{cite book|title=How is it done?|last=Frost |first=John|publisher=The Reader's Digest Association Limited|year=1990|location=London|pages=202}}</ref> Yeager and Glennis moved to [[Grass Valley, California]], after his retirement from the Air Force in 1975. The couple prospered as a result of Yeager's best-selling autobiography, speaking engagements, and commercial ventures.<ref name="Moller">{{cite news|last=Moller|first=Dave |url=http://www.theunion.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040219/NEWS/102190105|title=Yeager children sue their father|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120820012601/http://www.theunion.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20040219%2FNEWS%2F102190105|archive-date=August 20, 2012|publisher=The Union|location=Nevada County, California|date=February 19, 2004|access-date=September 26, 2011}}</ref> Yeager's son Mickey (Michael) died unexpectedly in Oregon, on March 26, 2011.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/registerguard/obituary.aspx?n=michael-yeager&pid=150109447| title = Michael Yeager (1947-2011)-obituary| website = [[Legacy.com]]}}</ref>

Yeager appeared in a [[Texas]] advertisement for [[George H. W. Bush]]'s [[1988 United States presidential election|1988 presidential campaign]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Republicans Hire Chuck Yeager For Political Ads|url=https://apnews.com/article/1ea02f01f81e60598bc0b0853ec5e2fa|access-date=December 7, 2020|work=Associated Press|date=October 13, 1988}}</ref>
In 2000, Yeager met actress Victoria Scott D'Angelo on a hiking trail in [[Nevada County, California|Nevada County]]. The pair started dating shortly thereafter, and married in August 2003.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Chuck-Yeager-is-in-love-Three-of-his-kids-doubt-2821681.php|title=Chuck Yeager is in love. Three of his kids doubt his new wife, who's half his age, is made of the right stuff. They're suing.|last=Costantinou|first=Marianne|date=February 18, 2004|website=sfgate.com|access-date=February 6, 2020}}</ref> A bitter dispute arose between Yeager, his children, and D'Angelo. The children contended that she, at least 35 years Yeager's junior, had married him for his fortune. Yeager and D'Angelo both denied the charge. Litigation ensued, in which his children accused D'Angelo of "undue influence" on Yeager, and Yeager accused his children of diverting millions of dollars from his assets.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-jul-02-et-hubler2-story.html|title=Far from heavens|last=Hubler|first=Shawn|date=July 2, 2004|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|access-date=February 6, 2020}}</ref> In August 2008, the [[California Court of Appeal]] ruled for Yeager, finding that his daughter Susan had breached her duty as trustee.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.metnews.com/articles/2008/yeag082608.htm|title=C.A. rules against Chuck Yeager's daughter in dispute with stepmother|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121218050222/http://www.metnews.com/articles/2008/yeag082608.htm|archive-date=December 18, 2012|publisher=MetNews|date=August 26, 2008|access-date=November 30, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite court|url=http://www.fearnotlaw.com/articles/article22023.html|litigants=Yeager v. D'Angelo|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121218073636/http://www.fearnotlaw.com/articles/article22023.html |opinion=C052483|court=Cal.App.3rd|date=August 22, 2008}}</ref>

Yeager lived in Grass Valley, [[Northern California]] and died in the afternoon of December 7, 2020 ([[National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day]]), at age 97, in a Los Angeles hospital.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/video/chuck-yeager-made-history-breaking-121946785.html|title=Chuck Yeager, who made history for breaking the sound barrier, dies at 97|publisher=Yahoo!|format=Video |date=December 8, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/07/us/chuck-yeager-death/index.html|title=Chuck Yeager, pilot who broke the sound barrier, dies at 97|publisher=CNN|date=December 7, 2020|access-date=December 7, 2020|last1=Muntean|first1=Pete|last2=Silverman|first2=Hollie}}</ref> Following his death, President [[Donald Trump]] issued a statement of condolences stating Yeager "was one of the greatest pilots in history, a proud West Virginian, and an American original who relentlessly pushed the boundaries of human achievement".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/statement-president-regarding-passing-chuck-yeager/|title=Statement from the President Regarding the Passing of Chuck Yeager|newspaper=Trump White House Archives|date=December 8, 2020|access-date=January 21, 2024}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[History of aviation]]
* [[List of firsts in aviation]]
* [[Society of Experimental Test Pilots]]

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book|last=Hallion|first=Richard P.|title=Designers and Test Pilots|url=https://archive.org/details/designerstestpil00hall|url-access=registration|location=New York|publisher=Time-Life Books|year=1982 |isbn=0-8094-3316-8}}
* {{cite book|last1=Yeager|first1=Chuck|first2=Charles|last2=Leerhsen|title=Press on! Further Adventures in the Good Life|location=New York|publisher=Bantam Books|year=1988|isbn=0-553-05333-7}}
* [[Tom Wolfe|Wolfe, Tom]] ''[[The Right Stuff (book)|The Right Stuff]]'' New York: [[Farrar, Straus and Giroux|Farrar-Straus-Giroux]], 1979 {{ISBN|0-374-25033-2}}
* Yeager, Chuck, Bob Cardenas, Bob Hoover, Jack Russell and James Young ''The Quest for Mach One: A First-Person Account of Breaking the Sound Barrier'' New York: Penguin Studio, 1997 {{ISBN|0-670-87460-4}}
* Yeager, Chuck and Leo Janos, ''Yeager: An Autobiography'' New York: Bantam, 1985 {{ISBN|978-0-553-25674-1}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{official website|https://chuckyeager.com/}}
* [http://www.chuckyeager.org/history/background/ Biography from ChuckYeager.org]
* [https://www.af.mil/About-Us/Biographies/Display/Article/105165/charles-e-chuck-yeager/ U.S. Air Force: Chuck Yeager biography]
* [https://www.biography.com/political-figure/chuck-yeager Yeager in Biography.com]
* [http://www.nationalaviation.org/our-enshrinees/yeager-charles-chuck/ Biography in the National Aviation Hall of Fame] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117010822/http://www.nationalaviation.org/our-enshrinees/yeager-charles-chuck/ |date=January 17, 2021 }}
* [https://achievement.org/achiever/general-chuck-yeager/#interview General Chuck Yeager, USAF, Biography and Interview] with the [[Academy of Achievement|American Academy of Achievement]]
* {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060502161501/http://www.edwards.af.mil/history/docs_html/people/yeager_biography.html|date=May 2, 2006|title=Biographical sketch}}
* [http://airportjournals.com/chuck-yeager-booming-and-zooming-part-1/ ''Airport Journals''' "Chuck Yeager: Booming And Zooming" Part 1] and [http://airportjournals.com/chuck-yeager-booming-and-zooming-part-2/ Part 2]
* [http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/history/q0011a.shtml "Chuck Yeager & the Sound Barrier" in Aerospaceweb.org]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060502161501/http://www.edwards.af.mil/history/docs_html/people/yeager_biography.html Space.com: Chuck Yeager]
* {{IMDb name|0947015}}
* {{Discogs artist|Chuck Yeager}}
* [https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/07/us/chuck-yeager-dead.html Yeager obituary] via ''[[The New York Times]]''

{{Lists of flying aces}}
{{Authority control}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Yeager, Chuck}}
[[Category:Chuck Yeager| ]]
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