{"product_id":"chasing-the-demon-paperback","title":"Chasing the Demon - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eDan Hampton\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNATIONAL BESTSELLER - \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAt the end of World War II, a band of aces gathered in the Mojave Desert on a Top Secret quest to break the sound barrier-nicknamed \"The Demon\" by pilots. The true story of what happened in those skies has never been told. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eSpeed. \u003c\/em\u003eIn 1947, it represented the difference between victory and annihilation. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfter Hiroshima, the ability to deliver a nuclear device to its target faster than one's enemy became the singular obsession of American war planners. And so, in the earliest days of the Cold War, a highly classified program was conducted on a desolate air base in California's Mojave Desert. Its aim: to push the envelope of flight to new frontiers. There gathered an extraordinary band of pilots, including Second World War aces Chuck Yeager and George Welch, who risked their lives flying experimental aircraft to reach Mach 1, the so-called sound barrier, which pilots called \"the demon.\" \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eShrouding the program in secrecy, the US military reluctantly revealed that the \"barrier\" had been broken two months later, after the story was leaked to the press. The full truth has never been fully revealed--until now. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eChasing the Demon, \u003c\/em\u003efrom decorated fighter pilot and acclaimed aviation historian Dan Hampton, tells, for the first time, the extraordinary true story of mankind's quest for Mach 1. Here, of course, is twenty-four-year-old Captain Chuck Yeager, who made history flying the futuristic Bell X-1 faster than the speed of sound on October 14, 1947. Officially Yeager was the first to achieve supersonic flight, but drawing on new interviews with survivors of the program, including Yeager's former commander, as well as declassified files, Hampton presents evidence that a fellow American--George Welch, a daring fighter pilot who shot down a remarkable sixteen enemy aircraft during the Pacific War--met the demon first, though he was not favored to wear the laurels, as he was now a civilian test pilot and was not flying the Bell X-1.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eChasing the Demon \u003c\/em\u003esets the race between Yeager and Welch in the context of aviation history, so that the reader can learn and appreciate their accomplishments as never before.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eFront Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAT THE END OF WORLD WAR II, A BAND OF ACES GATHERED IN THE MOJAVE DESERT ON A TOP SECRET QUEST TO BREAK THE SOUND BARRIER, NICKNAMED \"THE DEMON\" BY PILOTS. THE TRUE STORY OF WHAT HAPPENED IN THOSE SKIES HAS NEVER BEEN TOLD\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSpeed. In 1947, it represented the difference between victory and annihilation. After Hiroshima, the ability to deliver a nuclear device to its target faster than one's enemy became the singular obsession of American war planners. And so, in the earliest days of the Cold War, a highly classified program was conducted on a desolate air base in California's Mojave Desert. Its aim: to push the envelope of flight to new frontiers. There gathered an extraordinary band of pilots--including Second World War aces Chuck Yeager and George Welch--who risked their lives flying experimental aircraft to reach Mach 1, the so-called sound barrier, which pilots called \"the demon.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOfficially Yeager was the first to achieve supersonic flight in the Bell X-1 \"Glamorous Glennis,\" but drawing on new interviews with survivors of the program, including Yeager's former commander, as well as declassified files, Hampton presents evidence that George Welch, a daring fighter pilot who shot down a remarkable sixteen enemy aircraft during the Pacific War, likely met the demon first, though he was not favored to wear the laurels, as he was now a civilian test pilot and not part of the government's X-1 program.\u003c\/p\u003eAcclaimed aviation historian and decorated fighter pilot Dan Hampton's \u003cem\u003eChasing the Demon\u003c\/em\u003e tells, for the first time, the extraordinary true story of mankind's quest for Mach 1, setting the race between Yeager and Welch in the context of aviation history, so that the reader can learn and appreciate their accomplishments as never before.--JOHN D. ANDERSON, JR., curator of aerodynamics at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum\u003ch3\u003eBack Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAT THE END OF WORLD WAR II, A BAND OF ACES GATHERED IN THE MOJAVE DESERT ON A TOP SECRET QUEST TO BREAK THE SOUND BARRIER, NICKNAMED \"THE DEMON\" BY PILOTS. THE TRUE STORY OF WHAT HAPPENED IN THOSE SKIES HAS NEVER BEEN TOLD\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSpeed. In 1947, it represented the difference between victory and annihilation. After Hiroshima, the ability to deliver a nuclear device to its target faster than one's enemy became the singular obsession of American war planners. And so, in the earliest days of the Cold War, a highly classified program was conducted on a desolate air base in California's Mojave Desert. Its aim: to push the envelope of flight to new frontiers. There gathered an extraordinary band of pilots--including Second World War aces Chuck Yeager and George Welch--who risked their lives flying experimental aircraft to reach Mach 1, the so-called sound barrier, which pilots called \"the demon.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOfficially Yeager was the first to achieve supersonic flight in the Bell X-1 \"Glamorous Glennis,\" but drawing on new interviews with survivors of the program, including Yeager's former commander, as well as declassified files, Hampton presents evidence that George Welch, a daring fighter pilot who shot down a remarkable sixteen enemy aircraft during the Pacific War, likely met the demon first, though he was not favored to wear the laurels, as he was now a civilian test pilot and not part of the government's X-1 program.\u003c\/p\u003eAcclaimed aviation historian and decorated fighter pilot Dan Hampton's \u003cem\u003eChasing the Demon\u003c\/em\u003e tells, for the first time, the extraordinary true story of mankind's quest for Mach 1, setting the race between Yeager and Welch in the context of aviation history, so that the reader can learn and appreciate their accomplishments as never before.\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 352\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1 x 7.9 x 5.3 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e June 04, 2019\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42096626368647,"sku":"9780062688736","price":16.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0601\/2623\/2711\/files\/60aa797745710d388f7fa9b86fb15a50.webp?v=1732343676","url":"https:\/\/booksby.splitshops.com\/products\/chasing-the-demon-paperback","provider":"Books by splitShops","version":"1.0","type":"link"}