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| -Obits- |
| Bob Hoover, one of history's greatest pilots, dead at 94 |
| 2016-10-27 |
| [NewsCut] Bob Hoover, a World War II fighter pilot, a former Air Force test pilot, and the chase plane pilot for Chuck Yeager when he broke the sound barrier for the first time, was 94. A lot of the greatest pilots who ever lived will tell you that Hoover was the greatest pilot who ever lived. Having been shot down over Nice, France during his 59th mission in World War II, Hoover spent 16 months as a POW, spending much of the time in solitary confinement as punishment for two dozen escape attempts. Finally, he succeeded just before the end of the war by stealing a German fighter. Had he remained at the POW camp a few days longer, the Allies likely would have reached him. But now he faced possible extinction at the hands of any friendly pilot who would presume his Focke Wulf was manned by the enemy. Hoover said he hugged a cloud ceiling at about 4,000 feet, figuring he would duck up into it if he was spotted by any Allied aircraft. He planned on flying west until he saw signs of Allied territory. "I wanted to see windmills to be sure," he explained. That would signal friendly Holland. By the time he reached Holland, Hoover said, "My gas tank was registering close to zero." He chose to land while he still had full control of the fighter, and selected an open field. Hoover dropped the fighter’s landing gear and settled in. Con't. |
| Posted by:Besoeker |
| #6 I saw Hoover several times at the Reno Air Races in '76-'81 flying his P51. Outstanding pilot! |
| Posted by: Mugsy Glink 2016-10-27 17:31 |
| #5 Saw him at an airshow years ago flying a P-51 and then doing some amazing stalls in a Mitsubishi 2 engine turboprop. |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2016-10-27 13:33 |
| #4 Here's a toast.... |
| Posted by: Lowspark 2016-10-27 10:17 |
| #3 One of the greatest 'Stick & Rudder' pilots ever. Saw him fly his P-51 at an Oshkosh Air Show in the '80s. Absolutely Awesome. |
| Posted by: Mullah Richard 2016-10-27 09:13 |
| #2 Ridley, now Hoover, Beemans stock tanks. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2016-10-27 07:57 |
| #1 Y'all should read this story. |
| Posted by: Threreque Trotsky2823 2016-10-27 01:00 |