CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A P-51 World War II vintage fighter plane soared above the twin spans of the Chuck Yeager Bridge over the Kanawha River Friday afternoon. The flight made several passes as on the ground Gov. Jim Justice, Yeager’s widow Victoria Yeager, and officials from the West Virginia Department of Transportation celebrated the rededication of the Yeager Bridge.
“I told this guy he’s a coward. If it was Chuck he would have flown under the bridge,” laughed Victoria as the gathered crowd watched the fly by.
Yeager was credited with shooting down a dozen aircraft in World War II from the seat of the P-51. He became an ace in a day in the plane and was the first pilot to ever shoot down a jet, which he also did from the cockpit of the P-51. He caught a German ME 2 taking off.
“He said it wasn’t very sporting, but what the hell and shot him down,” Victoria chimed in as she shared some of the General’s war stories with the crowd.
Later in his career, Yeager gained worldwide acclaim as the first man to fly faster than the speed of sound. Saturday will be the 76th anniversary of that historic flight made over the California desert in 1947 aboard the Bell X-1.
“Being from West Virginia saved his life,” Victoria told the crowd. “He was shot down, but was able to elude capture and said, ‘There ain’t a German alive who could catch a West Virginian in the woods.'”
Knowledge gained from working with his dad to service gas well pumps in West Virginia also lent to Yeager’s skillset and enabled him to help develop the X-1 program. Some of the same mechanical systems were aboard the plane he piloted past Mach 1.
“His courage, his intelligence, his absolute grit and he’s from West Virginia. My God a living, do you totally realize that every single thing we have in life we owe to people like this great man,” said Justice as part of the ceremony.
The new bridge features one gold span and one dark blue span crossing the river at the northern terminus of the West Virginia Turnpike. The new paint job and a refurbishment of the bridges have been underway for months and the new paint shined brightly in the October sunshine.
“I really appreciate that the Yeager Bridge is as excellent as its namesake,” Victoria told the crowd.
The bridge ceremony is part of a weekend of festivities dedicated to Yeager’s famous flight. A kids fly-in day at the Jackson County Airport has been postponed due to anticipated inclement weather for Saturday in the community of Millwood. The event will be held Oct. 29. There will be a special screening of The Right Stuff at the Marquee Cinema in South Charleston Saturday night.