Who is the pilot that broke the speed of sound in 1947 that was interviewed for the book by Tom Wolfe?
Chuck Yeager Charles Elwood "Chuck" Yeager ( ; born February 13 , 1923) is a former United States Air Force general officer and record-setting test pilot. In 1947, he became the first pilot confirmed to have exceeded the speed of sound in level flight.
BOAC Flight 911 BOAC Flight 911 (Speedbird 911) was a round-the-world flight operated by British Overseas Airways Corporation that crashed as a result of an encounter with severe clear-air turbulence near Mount Fuji in Japan on 5 March 1966. The Boeing 707-436 on this flight was commanded by Captain Bernard Dobson, 45, from Dorset, an experienced 707 pilot who had been flying these aircraft since November 1960.