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Charles Elwood “Chuck” Yeager was born on February 13, 1923, and spent most of his childhood in Hamlin, West Virginia. He enlisted with the US Army Air Corps on September 13, 1941 at Fort Thomas in Newport Kentucky. Chuck was 18 years old.
According to the National World War II Museum: "Initially Yeager trained as a mechanic, but in 1942 he learned about an Army Air Forces initiative to increase the number of American combat pilots by accepting applications from enlisted men with no college education. Yeager applied in December 1942 and was accepted for flight training. He earned his wings the following March and joined the 363rd Fighter Squadron, which was equipped with Bell P-39 Airacobras. Yeager and the rest of the 363rd Fighter Squadron, part of the 357th Fighter Group, sailed for England in November 1943 to join the air war against Germany."
In England, the 357th Fighter Group joined Eighth Air force and refitted with P-51 Mustang fighters. Yeager took possession of a P-51B Mustang that he named “Glamurus Glen” after his fiancé, Glennis Dickhouse. Yeager soon upgraded to a P-51D Mustang, which he christened “Glamorous Glen II,” later to be followed by a P-51C Mustang named “Glamorous Glen III.”
"Yeager flew his first combat mission in February 1944. He quickly discovered he had a natural aptitude for dogfighting because of his superb 20/10 eyesight and his ability to rapidly react while remaining calm. On March 4, he scored his first aerial victory against a German Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter while escorting American bombers in a daylight raid over Germany. The very next day, Yeager’s luck turned when he was shot down near Bordeaux, France. After successfully parachuting into occupied territory, Yeager managed to evade capture with the help of the French resistance. During the next two months, Yeager made his way to Spain, and then back to England. Although American pilots who escaped occupied territory were normally forbidden from returning to combat so that they would not betray members of the French resistance if they were shot down again and captured, Yeager obtained permission from General Dwight Eisenhower himself to resume flying combat missions. Eisenhower’s gamble paid off on October 12, 1944, when Yeager destroyed five Bf 109 fighters in a single engagement. First Lieutenant Yeager later reported how he spotted the German fighters one-and-a-half miles away and attacked them with the sun at his back. Two of the German pilots bailed out immediately when they realized Yeager was in a perfect position to rake their aircraft with machine-gun fire. In Yeager’s after-action report, he explained how he closed on the next German fighter and opened fire from about 600 yards away. Yeager “observed strikes all over the ship, particularly heavy in the cockpit.” Yeager did not bother to pursue the stricken plane because he spotted yet another German fighter. This time Yeager closed to just 100 yards and “took a deflect on shot of about 10°. I gave about a 3 second burst and the whole fuselage split open and blew up after we passed.” Finally, Yeager forced a fifth German pilot to bail out after scoring hits on his plane’s wings and tail section." (National World War II Museum)
"Yeager was subsequently promoted to Captain in recognition of his skill and leadership. Then on November 6, 1944, Yeager was leading a flight that encountered several brand new German Me 262 jet fighters near Assen, Germany. Although the German fighters promptly used their superior speed to escape into the clouds, Yeager dropped below the cloud cover and spotted a lone Me 262 preparing to land. Yeager dove upon the jet and scored several hits on his wings, causing the German pilot to crash several hundred feet short of the runway in a wooded area. Later that month, Yeager scored four additional victories against German Fw 190 aircraft on November 27. By the time World War II ended in Europe, Yeager had flown 64 combat missions and was credited with single-handedly destroying 12 enemy aircraft." (National World War II Museum)
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). On October 14, 1947, over California’s Mojave Desert, Yeager successfully piloted the Bell X-1 to a speed of Mach 1.06 (700 mph).
During the Vietnam War, he returned to a combat assignment as Commander of the 405th Fighter Wing which was stationed in the Philippines. After rising to the rank of Brigadier General, he served as Vice Commander of the 17th Air Force in Germany. Yeager was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 and retired from the Air Force on March 1, 1975.
Chuck Yeager passed away on December 7, 2020 at the age of 97 in Los Angeles California. Brigadier General Yeager lies in rest at Arlington National Cemetery. Lest We Forget.
Original description sourced by: National World War II Museum, www.chuckyeager.com Ancestry Database Photos: AFA Library and Mike Cassidy/USAF (Fair Use Photos)
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