When I was growing up, everyone knew who Chuck Yeager was. We were all fascinated by the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo astronauts, but to us, Chuck Yeager was the man.
If you've ever wondered why airline pilots all sound the same it's because they all talk like Chuck Yeager. He spoke in a clear, relaxed, "no-worries" slow southern voice and every pilot in the United States imitated that style. If you were in a plane in the 1970's and there was a problem, the pilot would come on the PA system, put on his best Chuck Yeager voice and say, "Well folks, looks like we're gonna be getting to the gate a little earlier than scheduled." What he wouldn't tell you is it was because one of the engines just quit, he had declared an emergency with ATC and he was in the process of saving all your lives by getting the plane on the ground as quickly as possible.
Yeager was the first human being to fly an aircraft faster than the speed of sound while in controlled horizontal flight. The "controlled horizontal flight" part of that statement is important because there are a lot of guys that flew faster than the speed of sound before him but they did it in vertical flight, directly into the ground. He was also the first human being to fly faster than twice the speed of sound.
In both cases, he said something to the effect of, "Anyone can fly fast. It's no different than sitting in an easy chair". He failed to mention that up until he did it, a lot of guys died trying to do it. But to Yeager, it was easy. Just another day in the plane, enjoying the scenery.
I'm not saying our world is a better place because he was in it but I am saying that I am glad he was in it. I hope he's with sitting with his buddies, chewin' on a stick of Beemans and petting GD Dog.
Yes, Yeager had a dog named GD Dog. He named it God Damned Dog after constantly tripping over it. His wife, Glennis, made him stop saying that in front of the kids so he shortened it to GD Dog.
At the age of 74, he flew an F-15 faster than the speed of sound. After he landed, someone asked him what he planned next and his reply was, "I don't buy green bananas." That was his way of saying, "Son, I'm 74. I live for today. I have no idea what I'm going to do next."
Not much else going on. I mean not much aside from the usual insanity that is Trump. Trust me, once Biden takes over, it's still going to be insane, just a different flavor of insanity.
So aside from these links, I got nothing else for you:
- I hope he wins.
- This is why I think the "news media" is full of shit. Why is this considered "news"?
- In case you needed more evidence that there are some weird people in our world.
- Here's your (semi)Naked Giy In The News story.
- Butt-dialing Anglers would be a fantastic name for a 1950 rock-a-billy band.
- That settles it. No panda's as pets in my house.
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