United States Air Force's legendary pilot Charles Yeager died on December 7, 2020 at the age of 97. He was a highly decorated soldier who was also awarded the US Presidential Medal of Freedom, America's highest civilian award. He remained active on twitter until very recently. In a 2017 tweet, Yeager called Pakistan Air Force pilots "the best in the world". In another tweet in 2015, Yeager said "they (PAF pilots) kicked the Indians butt".
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| General Charles Yeager (1923-2020) |
General Yeager got the world's attention as early as 1944 when he shot down 5 German fighter aircraft in a single day. Later, he became the first man to break the sound barrier. Yeager's life as a daredevil pilot was documented by Tom Wolf in his 1979 book "The Right Stuff" that was later made into a movie. Actor Sam Shepard played Yeager in the movie.
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| @GenChuckYeager's 2015 Tweet |
General Yeager, a colonel in 1971, served as an advisor to Pakistan Air Force. He was there during the 1971 India-Pakistan war. Here's what he said about his experience in Pakistan:
"This Air Force (PAF), is second to none" "The air war lasted two weeks and the Pakistanis scored a three-to-one kill ratio, knocking out 102 Russian-made Indian jets and losing thirty-four airplanes of their own. I'm certain about the figures because I went out several times a day in a chopper and counted the wrecks below." "They were really good, aggressive dogfighters and proficient in gunnery and air combat tactics. I was damned impressed. Those guys just lived and breathed flying. "
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| @GenChuckYeager's 2017 Tweet |
In addition to serving in Pakistan, Yeager also worked as an advisor in the Philippinnes and Spain. In the 1950s and ’60s, Yeager commanded squadrons, rising to colonel and later to brigadier general. After his retirement, he continued flying for the Air Force and NASA in some capacity as well as performing test flights on light aircraft for Piper Aircraft.
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