Robert M. Stanley

1912 - 1977

Lieutenant General Lawrence C. Craigie

1902 - 1994

First Americans To Pilot A Jet Aircraft, 1942

Inducted in 1992

America entered the jet age on October 2, 1942, when Robert Stanley, a civilian test pilot for Bell Aircraft, flew the top secret Bell XP-59A Airacomet at Muroc Dry Lake, California.

Lieutenant General Lawrence Craigie, United States Army Air Corps, later piloted the Airacomet, becoming the first American military officer to fly a jet.

Stanley's and Craigie's flights were significant achievements in the development of jet aircraft and laid the foundation for advancements in jet aviation.