April 19, 2022
On this date in 2006, American naval officer and test pilot Albert Scott Crossfield passed away. While piloting the Skyrocket, an experimental aircraft, Crossfield reached speeds of 1,291 mph (2,078 km/h). As such, he was the first to reach Mach-2, or twice the speed of sound. Crossfield continued flying until his death and passed away in a plane crash while piloting a Cessna 210A.
To read more about Crossfield, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/centers/armstrong/about/biographies/pilots/scott-crossfield.html
Pilot Albert Scott Crossfield next to the D-558-2 after his first Mach 2 flight. Image credit: NACA/NASA