Gov. Jim Justice will join transportation officials and others Friday on the West Virginia Turnpike to celebrate the completion of work on the Charles “Chuck” Yeager Bridge on the West Virginia Turnpike.
The coat of paint in blue and gold commemorates the 76th anniversary of Yeager’s historic flight on Oct. 14, 1947.
Born in Hamlin, West Virginia, Brigadier General Charles Elwood Yeager served in the United States Air Force. He became the first pilot in history to break the sound barrier in the Bell X-1 Glamorous Glennis airplane. The experimental purpose-built aircraft reached 1,127 kilometers (700 miles) per hour.
Justice will be joined by Transportation Secretary Jimmy Wriston, West Virginia Parkways Authority Executive Director Jeff Miller, and Victoria Yeager, wife of the late Brig. Gen. Chuck Yeager.
The event on Friday, Oct. 13 at 12:30 p.m. takes place at the West Virginia State Police Troop 7 – Charleston South Detachment and will feature a flyover by a P-51 Mustang fighter aircraft, the same model flown by Yeager during WWII.