127k GIF - 51k JPEG Smithsonian Institution photograph #99-41036-7 by Mark Avino	Milestone: First aircraft to travel faster than the speed of sound.
	Date of Milestone: October 14, 1947
	Aircraft: Bell X-1 "Glamorous Glennis"
	Pilot: Capt. Charles E. "Chuck" Yeager, USAF
	Aircraft Location: Smithsonian Institution, National Air and Space Museum, Milestones of Flight Gallery

On October 14, 1947, the Bell X-1 became the first airplane to fly faster than the speed of sound. Piloted by U.S. Air Force Capt. Charles E. "Chuck" Yeager, the X-1 reached a speed of 1,127 kilometers (700 miles) per hour, Mach 1.06, at an altitude of 13,000 meters (43,000 feet). Yeager named the airplane "Glamorous Glennis" in tribute to his wife.

Air-launched at an altitude of 7,000 meters (23,000 feet) from the bomb bay of a Boeing B-29, the X-1 used its rocket engine to climb to its test altitude. It flew a total of 78 times, and on March 26, 1948, with Yeager at the controls, it attained a speed of 1,540 kilometers (957 miles) per hour, Mach 1.45, at an altitude of 21,900 meters (71,900 feet). This was the highest velocity and altitude reached by a manned airplane up to that time.
Transferred from the U.S. Air Force to the National Air and Space Museum.

Design Features:

Many important structural and aerodynamic advances were first employed in the Bell X-1, including extremely thin yet exceptionally strong wing sections and a horizontal stabilizer that could be adjusted up and down to improve control, especially at transonic (near the speed of sound) speeds. Because of the stabilizer's success, later transonic military aircraft were designed with all moving horizontal stabilizers as standard equipment.
The X-1's fuselage was shaped like a .50 caliber bullet. Even the windscreen was specially flaired to retain the bullet shape. The X-1 carried more than 230 kilograms (500 pounds) of flight test instruments.

More Information:
Bell X-1 "Glamorous Glennis" - Aircraft of The Smithsonian