Dana Rohrabacher: “I thank Mr. Lampson and Mr. Feeney for their hard work they have been doing here, not just on this legislation but…”

“I thank Mr. Lampson and Mr. Feeney for their hard work they have been doing here, not just on this legislation but overseeing America's space program. You certainly have my respect and my support, and I'm happy today for their support for this legislation. This bill takes note and honors America's historic aeronautic accomplishments on the 60th anniversary of one of our great aviation milestones, that of achieving mach 1, better known as breaking the sound barrier. It also honors those American scientists and technologists who conceived and designed the Bell XS-1, as well as the courage of the hero who flew the plane, General Chuck Yeager of West Virginia. The leadership of Larry Bell of Bell Aircraft and John Stack of NACA, which is the predecessor of NASA, are also recognized and applauded here today. The sound barrier was not called a barrier for nothing. As an aircraft approaches the sound barrier, many of the subsonic rules of aerodynamics change radically. Conventional airplanes that had flown close to mach 1 before that, and they had done this mainly when they were diving, were known to have shaken violently and quite often lost control. On that morning of October 14, 1947, the principles of supersonic flight were still not proven. It was unknown whether an airplane could surpass the speed of sound and survive. The XS-1 was pushing the envelope and it was dangerous.”