May 18: Jackie Cochran

On this date in History .... May 18, 1953:  

Jackie Cochran, who holds more distance & speed records than any pilot ,living or dead, male or female, becomes the 1^st woman to break the sound barrier.  Chuck Yeager, who broke the sound barrier in ’47, was “flying chase” w/ her that day (shown together in this photo).  

She was also the 1^st woman to:
·         land & take off from an aircraft carrier,
·         reach Mach 2,
·         pilot a bomber across the No. Atlantic (1941)
·         fly a fixed wing jet aircraft across the Atlantic
·         enter the Bendix Transcontinental Race
·         the only woman to be President of the Federation Aeronautique International (1958–1961)
·         be inducted into the California Aerospace Walk of Fame (2006)

She was the first pilot, man or woman to:
·         make a blind (instrument) landing,
·         fly above 20,000 ft w/ an oxygen mask

(So let me ask the question: “Who’s the greatest pilot you ever saw?” And bonus points if you know what movie that line is from!)