September 27, 2021
Today in 1956, Air Force test pilot Captain Milburn Apt flew the Bell Aircraft Company’s rocket-powered X-2 at Mach 3.2. This event marked the first human flight to exceed the speed of sound by more than a factor of three. Unfortunately, Apt lost control of the X-2 due to inertial coupling when returning to base leading to a fatal crash. Apt was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross in 1957.
Captain Milburn G. “Mel” Apt stands in front of the Bell X-2. Apt was the first person to fly faster than Mach 3, which he accomplished September 27, 1956 on a flight that cost him his life. Credit: United States Air Force