Up Close and Personal with the Supersonic Bell X-1 Rocket Plane

Slide inside the cockpit with this gallery of the famous "Glamorous Glennis" Bell X-1 rocket plane that first broke the sound barrier.

Dan Carney, Senior Editor

October 26, 2020

26 Slides
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Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum

Most of us are familiar with the bright orange, bullet-shaped Bell X-1 rocketship that legendary test pilot Chuck Yeager used to break the sound barrier for the first time on Oct. 14, 1947. Some of us may recall seeing the flight re-enacted in the fantastic film, “The Right Stuff,” which seems to be a mostly accurate portrayal of the event.

But the Bell X-1 that Yeager flew has hung from the rafters of the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum since it opened in 1976, so we couldn’t see many of the plane’s details up close.

Fortunately, Smithsonian has helped bring us closer to the famous plane by releasing photos for us to enjoy.

 

About the Author

Dan Carney

Senior Editor, Design News

Dan’s coverage of the auto industry over three decades has taken him to the racetracks, automotive engineering centers, vehicle simulators, wind tunnels, and crash-test labs of the world.

A member of the North American Car, Truck, and Utility of the Year jury, Dan also contributes car reviews to Popular Science magazine, serves on the International Engine of the Year jury, and has judged the collegiate Formula SAE competition.

Dan is a winner of the International Motor Press Association's Ken Purdy Award for automotive writing, as well as the National Motorsports Press Association's award for magazine writing and the Washington Automotive Press Association's Golden Quill award.

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He has held a Sports Car Club of America racing license since 1991, is an SCCA National race winner, two-time SCCA Runoffs competitor in Formula F, and an Old Dominion Region Driver of the Year award winner. Co-drove a Ford Focus 1.0-liter EcoBoost to 16 Federation Internationale de l’Automobile-accredited world speed records over distances from just under 1km to over 4,104km at the CERAM test circuit in Mortefontaine, France.

He was also a longtime contributor to the Society of Automotive Engineers' Automotive Engineering International magazine.

He specializes in analyzing technical developments, particularly in the areas of motorsports, efficiency, and safety.

He has been published in The New York Times, NBC News, Motor Trend, Popular Mechanics, The Washington Post, Hagerty, AutoTrader.com, Maxim, RaceCar Engineering, AutoWeek, Virginia Living, and others.

Dan has authored books on the Honda S2000 and Dodge Viper sports cars and contributed automotive content to the consumer finance book, Fight For Your Money.

He is a member and past president of the Washington Automotive Press Association and is a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers

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