B-29 and Bell X-1

On October 14, 1947, a modified B-29 bomber took off from the Muroc Air Base carrying a very special cargo: an experimental rocket-plane known as the Bell X-1. At an alitiude of 7000 meters, the little orange plane dropped out of the B-29’s bomb bay, speeding ahead and climbing to it’s test altitude. Chuck Yeager, the Bell X-1’s pilot, then drove the rocket plane to accelerate to a speed of over 700 mph. Spectators below the flight path heard a loud double bang, and, being accustomed to such sounds, assumed that this was just another failed test flight. However, this to the engineers was the sound of success. This was the first time the sound barrier had been broken. This recreation of the legendary aircraft doesn’t come close to recreating the magic of this momentous moment, but it works nonetheless.