Chuck Yeager was the first person ever to break the sound barrier in 1947, at the age of 24. His success in the Bell X-1 experimental rocket plane helped pave the way for the US space programme ...

But just days before his record-breaking flight ... The X-1 raced toward the sound barrier as Yeager tested the plane's stabilizer. "The rudder and elevator lost their grip on the thinning ...

Yeager pushed the rocket engine. He kept pushing until the aircraft hit 700 mph—Mach 1.06. Breaking the sound barrier was surprisingly uneventful. After 20 seconds he cut the engine and glided ...

Slick Goodlin was a test pilot for Bell Laboratories and made numerous flights in the X-1 before it was transferred to the military for the sound barrier attempt. In 1947, Chuck Yeager was a ...