Yeager’s wild ride in the Bell X-1A

Transcript follows

Yeager: (Illegible – inaudible – gasping) – I’m down to 25,000 over Tehachapi. Don’t know whether I can get back to the base or not.

Jackie L. “Jack” Ridley (flying low chase in an F-86 Sabre): At 25,000 feet, Chuck?

Yeager: Can’t say much more, I got to (blurry) – save myself.

Yeager: I’m – (illegible) – (Christ!)

Ridley: What say, Chuck?

Yeager: I say I don’t know if I tore anything up or not but Christ!

Arthur W. “Kit” Murray (also in an F-86, flying high chase): Tell us where you are if you can.

Yeager: I think I can get back to the base okay, Jack. Boy. I’m not going to do that anymore.

Murray: Try to tell us where you are, Chuck.

Yeager: I’m (gasping) – I’ll tell you in a minute. I got 1800 lbs [nitrogen] source pressure.

Murray: Chuck from Murray, if you can give me altitude and heading, I’ll try to check you from outside.

Yeager: Be down at 18,000 feet. I’m about – I’ll be over the base at about 15,000 feet in a minute.

Murray: Yes, sir.

Yeager: Those guys were so right!

Yeager: Source pressure is still 15 seconds, I’m getting OK now.

Yeager: I got all the oscillograph data switches off. 4 fps camera off, it’s okay.

Bell Truck: Jettison and vent your tanks.

Yeager: I have already jettisoned. Now I’m venting both lox and fuel. Leaving hydrogen peroxide alone.

Bell Truck: Roger.
Yeager: I cut it, I got – in real bad trouble up there.

Yeager: Over the base right now, Kit, at 14,500 feet.

Murray: I have you.

Yeager: Does everything look okay on the airplane?

Murray: I’m still catching up to you.

Yeager: Going to do a 360 here to the left.

Murray: I don’t have you, that’s a T-33.

Yeager: I’m right over the end of the diagonal runway – right over the North-South runway at the 3 1/2 mile marker. I’m going to make a right-hand pattern.

Yeager: Gear coming down. Source pressure is still 1650. Gear down and locked.

Yeager: Kit, got me in sight yet?

Yeager: Huh?

Murray: Negative.

Yeager: Came down to 12,000 feet on a right-hand downwind leg over the end of the East-West runway in the sound end of the lake.

Murray: All right, roger, I see him.

Ridley: Got him, Kit?

Murray: Yes.

Yeager: Flaps coming down.

Yeager: Source pressure still 1600.

Yeager: I’m a little bit fogged up – not too bad.

Murray: No, I don’t have you, Chuck.

Yeager: I’m on the base leg, I’ll be landing on 35 right in a minute.

Maj. Thompson (on ground): Kit, swing to the right sharp, clear down on the edge of the lake bed, this is Tommy.

Yeager: I’ll be down over the South track there in a minute, down to 7,000 feet.

Murray: Roger.

Yeager: Going to land a little long, I would appreciate [it] if you’d get there and get this thing off (meaning pressure suit.) I’m hurting.

Maj. Thompson: On the final, Kit.

Yeager: Just over the edge of the lake right now, Kit, got about 220 indicated.

Maj. Thompson: Right in front of you, Kit, to your right. Down below you to the right, Kit.

Yeager: 1550 everything is all right. By God–I told you that–that counter went around twice.

Murray: Coming off 50 – 30 – 20 – 20 – 20 – 5 – 2 – holding about 2 ½ – 2 – 1 – looks good, mighty fine.

Yeager: You know, if I’d had a seat you wouldn’t still see me in this thing.

Bell Truck: Chuck, did your suit blow on you?

Yeager: No, it never did. I opened the – uh – it got up to about 43 thousand and I opened the windshield defroster and it went back down. I think I busted the canopy with my head. I don’t know.

Bell Truck: WOW!