The Great Games Of A Great American Hero

One that doesn’t get enough credit (at least as a gaming “character”), though, is legendary pilot Chuck Yeager.

Born in 1923, Yeager enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces just two months prior to America’s entry into the Second World War. Graduating from flight training in 1943, he was sent to the United Kingdom where he’d fly P-51 Mustangs (all named after his girlfriend, Glennis) for most of the war.

With only one German “kill” to his name, Yeager was shot down in early 1944 over France, where the Resistance helped smuggle him and another downed Allied airman through to nuetral Spain, and from there he made his way back to England. Despite being an airman, Yeager was of great help to the Resistance along the way, helping them construct bombs. He’d later receive the Bronze Star for helping the other airman – who had lost part of his leg – cross the Pyrenees mountains.

Back in the UK by May 1944, Yeager would go on to be one of America’s most accomplished fighter pilots, ending the war with 11.5 kills from 61 missions. Remarkably, five of those came in a single day’s combat, earning him the incredibly rare honour of being an “ace in a day” (five kills being the threshold after which a pilot may be called an “ace”).

Flown back to the US before the war ended, Yeager, now a Captain, began working with the Aeronautical Systems Flight Test Division at Edwards Air Force base. He stayed on with the Air Force after the war, and by 1947 would be flying the experimental Bell X-1, becoming the first human being to ever travel faster than the speed of sound.

By 1955, however, and having reached a maximum speed of Mach 2.44 in a Bell X-1A a few year earlier, Yeager was back in a more frontline role. He would spend the next 14 years leading squadrons of fighters and fighter-bombers in Europe and the United States, culminating in a return to combat in Vietnam between 1966-68.

He would spend the years between 1969-73 in Pakistan, serving as an advisor to that nation’s air force, and after one more stint in Germany retired from the Air Force in 1975, at the rank of Brigadier General and with over a dozen commendations to his name.

So what’s all this got to do with video games? Well, thanks to both his Second World War and test pilot accomplishments, Yeager had become a celebrity of sorts, and in the 1980′s Electronic Arts signed him up to appear as the face of three flight simulator games it would release between 1987 and 1991.

Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War

A-10A Shoot down the A-10A Fischer in Mission 5 to unlock the A-10A and its SP color scheme. Ace Combat 5 reference When you return to the round table for the second time, run down every allied fighter. You will eventually find a fighter named hrtbrk1, from Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War. ADF-01 Falken Have a saved game file from Ace Combat 4: Shattered Skies and Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War on your memory card to unlock the ADF-01 Falken for purchase in the hangar after Mission 1. Alternately, have a saved game file from Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War on your memory card. Then, Complete Campaign mode with all three Ace Styles on any difficulty setting. Alternately, get the Supreme Mercenary, Supreme Soldier, and Supreme Knight medals. Complete Campaign mode on the Ace difficulty setting to unlock the SP color scheme for the ADF-01 Falken. ADFX-01 Finish the campaign mode on any difficulty set. But must do it with all of three different ace styles. Bonus hangar Get an S rank on all 55 missions in Campaign mode on the Ace difficulty setting to unlock a new hangar with Ustio and Galm team flags. Completion bonuses Complete Campaign mode with any Ace Style on any difficulty setting to unlock the Music Player and Scene Viewer in the Ace Style Gallery. EA-18G Complete Mission 14C to unlock the EA-18G. Shoot down the EA-18G Wolkenwand in Mission 11 to unlock the SP color scheme for the EA-18G. EA-6B Complete Mission 6 to unlock the EA-6B. Shoot down the EA-6B Bergnebel in Mission 9 on the Ace difficulty setting to unlock the SP color scheme for the EA-6B. Expert Difficulty You must complete Hard Difficulty. F/A-18C Shoot down the Grun Squadron in Mission 3 in Soldier Ace Style to unlock the F/A-18C and its SP color scheme. F-1 SP color scheme Shoot down the F-1A Biene in Mission 8A to unlock the SP color scheme for the F-1. F-117A Complete Mission 14A to unlock the F-117A. F-14D Shoot down the Schnee Squadron in Mission 10 in Soldier Ace Style to unlock the F-14D and its SP color scheme. F-15C Complete Mission 9 in the Mercenary Path to unlock the F-15C. Shoot down the F-15C Mondlicht in Mission 13 to unlock the SP color scheme for the F-15C. F-15C (Pixy Solo Wing) Complete Campaign mode on the Expert difficulty setting to unlock the F-15C (Pixy Solo Wing).

Hungarian Aces of World War 2

Computer gaming world

P-38 Lightning aces of the ETO/MTO

479th Fighter Group, Riddle's Raiders

352nd Fighter Group