Death Of A Legend: Scott Crossfield Killed In A Plane Crash.
Posted: Friday, April 21, 2006
by Matthew Bright
STT Global Village News
By
Shook-the-Tree.co.uk Editorial Director.
Matthew Bright.
21/04/2006.
Scott Crossfield is a legend among many.
If the name is unfamiliar to you then this is the famous test pilot who first flew at twice the speed of sound. There is no really good way to go, but it seems fitting that a man passed away doing the one thing he clearly loved to do. ‘fly'.
The National Transport Safety Board based in Washington DC, is now investigating the cause of the crash. It is thought he was the sole occupant of a Cessna 210A that was located today 3.3 miles northwest of Ludville GA. After it disappeared off the radar screens as he flew across Georgia.
Scott Crossfield was born on October 2nd, 1921. in Berkeley, Calif, and was a in the US Navy during World War II.
He joined the National Advisory Committee of Aeronautics (NACA) which is part of NASA as a research pilot back in 1950. Crossfield was and still is a real hero to many, and was responsible for the dreams of many who went on to become pilots like myself or even spacemen and women.
He served at the famous Speed Flight Research Station, Edwards, California. He had a courage to face what many now take for granted. To trust in machinery and science that is new is still a risky business. The world of the test pilot is like a sea-saw, fun equalled by stress.
Crossield was the test pilot for the X1. X4. X5 and the XF-92A and D-558-1 and II aircraft. He clocked up 87 rocket flights in the X1 and D-558-II aircraft, and then topped that up with a further 12 flights in aircraft whose sole source of power was jet engine.
Scott Crossfield was a history maker. On the 20th of November, 1953, he was the first man to reach twice the speed of sound and flew at 1,320 miles per hour in the now equally legendary D-588-II Skyrocket.
In 1954 Scott Crossfield left NACA and in 1955 took up a position with North American Aviation on the design and construction of the X-15, which was a rocket powered aircraft. Here he worked as both designer and test pilot.
He was also responsible for many of the safety features incorporated into the plane, the design for which was then passed over to NASA and the US Air Force.
He flew the aircraft more than 30 times, reaching speeds of 1,960 miles per hour at a height of 88,116 feet. Flying was deep in the man's soul. He worked another 6 years for North American Aviation on projects such as the ‘Hound Dog Missile', Paraglider, Apollo and the tragic Saturn project.
Then in 1967 he was given an executive position with Eastern Airlines. In 1974 he moved on again and was made Senior Vice President of the Hawker Siddley Aviation company until he retired in 1993.
But pilots of the calibre of Scott Crossfield never really retire and the only thing they want to do is fly. There is something that gets in the blood when you are up in the air that just can not be beaten.
Everything looks so unreal and yet is very humbling at the same time.
I doubt very much if Scott Crossfield ever had the time to admire the views whilst jetting across the sky as a record breaker and test pilot, their main concern are the views they can see from the instrument panel and whether the aircraft ‘feels' as it should when flying.
Scott Crossfield was a man who lived and breathed flying. It was his love and his dreams. He inspired many around the world and those very same people, myself included, will be regarding the news of this great and brave man, with a sense of sadness.
The man that has passed today is a real childhood hero. A man that has allowed many to follow a dream of flying. His thoughts were also of safety for the pilot and he has left a fine legacy to us all to be proud of. He is a man that will be sadly missed by many.
Matthew
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