Stan Barrett Breaking The Sound Barrier Live from Edwards Air Force Base in 1979

[@Jaayou01]

I was an Air Traffic Controller in the tower when this all happened. My wife and I were invited to the huge celebration party with all the celebs and bigwigs in LA. We must have been the youngest ones there. Stan Barrett was presented with this set of beautiful brass balls on a nice wooden base. I was stationed there from 79-81. The things I saw!! Enterprise and Columbia space shuttles, cruise missiles, fly by wire tests, etc..

[@eddiehaskell1957]

Every now an then we're in the right place at the right time. I'm jealous. How far away were you when Stan the rocketman broke the sound barrier? Did you meet Chuck Yeager? Thank you for serving!

[@ckubricky]

@@eddiehaskell1957 Hey man, if you ever want to talk or have time for some questions, I'd like to reach out.

[@eddiehaskell1957]

@@ckubricky I haven't checked messages in awhile. I'm just now seeing yours. Sure we can talk. What do you have in mind?

[@racefanwfo]

So you where there big deal. Stan never went mach1.

[@dankuchar6821]

@@racefanwfo Well he probably went faster than you did. It was impressive for the time. It's still impressive.

[@tsr7198]

Great video! So nostalgic in an era where men were men and in this instance a bunch of men that were also humble. How refreshing in contrast.

[@georgew.5639]

I’m glad that this attempt has not be forgotten. I watched it on television when it took place.

[@joedrive9423]

It's cool but his instistence that he should be the record holder is a bit odd. The requirement to do a return run within a span of time is not arbitrary. It imposes an engineering challenge that's more likely to lead to other advances in engineering and dynamics.

[@Dragracer612]

As a kid growing up in the 70's, this stuff fascinated me. Turns out, it still does.

[@overthehandlebars]

Yes. This car and the Blue Flame

[@srcastic8764]

We never really grow up, do we?

[@Dragracer612]

@@srcastic8764 I certainly hope not.

[@dramius]

Yeah, and why wouldnt it. These guys, and guys like them doing similar things, were pushing challenges that were REAL. They were pushing physical limits, of design, materials, and their very LIVES. And its BAD F*CKIN ASS. It wasnt "virtual" or some doof on a computer. These were MEN.

[@Bitterrootbackroads]

Yes, and this kinda stuff was so far removed from daily life on the farm. Moon shots made big news. This seemed just as important to me, but coverage was just an occasional few minutes grainy B&W footage on Wide World of Sports on Saturday afternoons. Ah yes, and it could only happen in the good old USA. I sure miss that place!

[@ernestbrumage8590]

I remember hearing about this as it was happening but this is the first time that I've got to actually watch any of the video of it. "AWESOME" is the only word that I can come up with to describe this monumental project. Thanks so much for putting this on KZbin for us to watch.

[@andrecormier9596]

Sorry bout that, I remember watching it live.

[@melsuarez]

Wow! Amazing engineering, guts, patience and stick-to-it-tiveness. Wonderful documentary. Thank you.

[@htos1av]

This is solid tv gold. What it was like before cable. Very little 1970's tape exists due to costs and bulk erasing.

[@friendlypiranha774]

This was even before the IBM PC was invented.

[@massey4business]

​@@friendlypiranha774 Yup. I think it came around in the summer of '81 if I'm not mistaken.

[@bobfitzpatrick8952]

I was a junior in high school - I don't remember seeing this. This is kind of a treat for me.

[@ifmbm332b]

Remarkably comprehensive and informative coverage that really touched on every aspect of the story. Impressive.

[@billfake6256]

What an AWESOME video!and a fitting way to end focusing on the American Flag..God Bless everyone that contributed to this project making an American dream come true!

[@toddcott9510]

Best use of beer profits ever.

[@mikenewell9217]

Budweiser should have a base on The moon

[@michaelplumb2191]

Whether Stan Barrett broke the barrier or not , he certainly put on the best show . Every time i watch this , when that Sidewinder kicks in , it gives a shiver down my spine ! This was the era of Evel Knievel , when a Dare Devil truly put his life on the line , and did it for America or Britain and for the Hell of it !

[@posniknelb6114]

It's nothing compared to thrust SSC.

[@MAGGOT_VOMIT]

@@posniknelb6114 Pfft!! This car reaches 500mph before Thrust SSC can reach 80mph. Plus this car doesn't need 15mi of desert to do it like SSC. This car and the Blue Flame are the "Most Popular Cars Ever!!". I'm sorry but we all voted and it looks like you lost. 🤣

[@posniknelb6114]

😂Typical yanks, can never do the job properly. Backyard mechanics everytime. I mean, America has stolen everybody's ideas. You needed a bunch of Nazis to get you off the ground FFS. Impressive cigar tube pffftttt!!

[@davehoward22]

Thrust ssc has 15 mile of track because it can sustain the speed of sound

[@thudtheace]

@@posniknelb6114 Thrust SSC is like an old locomotive by comparison. And Thrust was about 20 years late to break the sound barrier.

[@Orcinus1967]

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." - Theodore Roosevelt

[@gearcoindustrialservices1173]

I just cropped that and pasted to my email signature.

[@hunter100t]

Written by as dreamer, a poet, someone who had not physically done much in his own life, but dreams of others doing what he could not. not uncommon with people with his affliction.

[@raynic1173]

Hunter, WHAT! You obviously have ridiculous standards on someone who hadn't 'physically done much', ol' Ted probably did more than many of his contemporaries and if you take today's standards, many more.

[@h2otech784]

@@raynic1173 TR was tougher than 99% of men today. Killed a bear with only a knife, continuing a speech after he had been shot, pulled strings to get to go into combat to lead a group of cavalry..... Make that 99.9%.

[@mopar1465]

@@hunter100t idiot

[@n5sdm]

Brock, Hal, Chuck .....God bless them for the history and entertainment, And then to give us cannonball run and smokey and the bandit and all the amazing stunts and records and bones broken.

[@rogerespinosa7063]

We were there, my twin and I helped with the project it was built in the backyard of Bill Frederick a next door neighbor of my sister in law. I was attending CSULA at the time Industrial Arts Department. It was lot of fun 1979!

[@B61Mod12]

regardless of the technicalities of speed records etc, this is truly an inspiring and heart warming story.

[@rayologyxm]

I agree

[@hunter100t]

Yes it was but its a shame they had to lie about it to get ahead in the struggle for speed. back in ww2 they say (some of the pilots) they would break the speed of sound sometimes in prop planes in a dive, and when you think they could fly at 400 plus on the straight and level, you can imagine what they could do on a full throttle long dive bearing in mind the sos is slower the higher up you are. there are many records broken that are not verified, but not on that day.

[@thethirdman225]

@@hunter100t A propeller driven aircraft can't go supersonic. Those who claimed it were relying on pitot tube readings and they didn't work reliably at those speeds.

[@aeroe2144]

@@thethirdman225 fyi pitot tubes only give you indicated air speed (IAS) not true airspeed (TAS) , so you could be going 900mph and have an IAS of 300mph. As altitude increases air gets thinner (ie less air molecules/ pressure) and pitot tubes work off pressure. Not saying anyone broke the sound barrier in a prop plane, just saying that your argument is completely backwards, what you should argue is compression issue that make it near impossible for a prop plane to go supersonic.

[@thethirdman225]

@@aeroe2144 I know. That's why I mentioned TAS conversions. The pitot head isn't all that accurate which is why you need TAS conversions. But after certain speeds they become inaccurate and that means the TAS conversions are inaccurate too.

[@GorillaCookies]

I had the pleasure of meeting Gen. Yeager twice here in Nor Cal. First time up in Grass Valley and the 2nd time many years later in Oroville . He was well into his 80s the 2nd time but had a grip when he shook my hand that shocked the hell out of me. There are many 50 year olds that dont have a grip like he did in his late 80s. RIP Gen. RIP

[@thevmanvj]

Cool project. Congrats to Hal, Stan, and others that try.

[@BulletSpoung]

Real hero's don't play with a ball, they put there lives on the line in an effort to do something extraordinary.

[@adamcrum8396]

this would make a great movie !!!! someone should do it

[@LTV_inc]

This car actually broke the sound barrier for a brief time. It may not have consistently exceeded it. To create a sonic boom the vehicle needs to create a Mach cone which does not happen instantaneously it also depends on the shape of the vehicle and the condition of the atmosphere. The thrust car which is so cool actually lived above Mach 1 long enough to create a boom ( double boom actually..) and a shock wave. NASA and DARPA have created shapes that go supersonic and do not create the shock wave, the N wave. I spent my life in aerospace engineering, this old man will shut up now......

[@Dman216]

Thanks more people should be listening

[@lyndonredpath7214]

Lloyd V...You do, of course , have the figures to support this theory....like it did mach 1 for x seconds.

[@mqbitsko25]

He may or may not have. There is no evidence.

[@Dman216]

i disagree.. theres video witnesses and testing data using every available technology at the time.. more evidence then ya need. Its just people playing the rules game and as i said before LSR rules dont matter..he did it confired in everyway and he didnt have to break thru the barrier as a scientist on this treat has said he just touched the edge but did it enuff that the rear of that 2 wheel missle bounced off the ground. Yes SSC was the first to do it under some rules fine for people that play by rules but Stan was the first MAN to do it, FOR MAN !

[@lyndonredpath7214]

TheDman216. So where is this data. That is the point. there is none.

[@djsi38t]

Wow what a fantastic film and Iconic piece of american history,these television program specials were talked about for weeks by kids in school and adults at work.

[@Ayyjaxx]

Absolutely love to watch history as it happens. Thanks for posting 👌🤘💯

[@hugejohnson5011]

"They've got the engine beefed up, track's in good shape, and Stan's ready!" When General Chuck Yeager is that sure and enthusiastic about it, how can you miss? A totally legendary man right there for sure. And, as down to Earth as he was, don't ever forget: GENERAL!

[@jamesford3648]

At 36:35 was the Best shot of the Video. I miss being young, Those were the Days, They really were.

[@stevejenkins6045]

Hi Jake, Steve Jenkins here….thanks for sharing last night. It was an honor to meet you. I have friends all around the world that are involved in Land Speed racing and was involved in developing a record setting motorcycle…kind of a long story. As aside note pay attention to your grandfathers brother Myron G…in my view they were both apex Index 4 attourneys and that is key to understanding much of what took place…for the record …Jake Sr and His brother Myron were not on my radar till last week.

[@2006gtobob]

I vaguely remember this. I was 8 years old when I watched this. I was a car nut, but didn't actually understand what was about to happen and what all was involved. But, boy, did I draw my rendition of this car afterwards!

[@GrimReaper-wz9me]

Why wouldn't there be the telltale sonic boom (bang) when the car exceeded Mach 1? I understand the radar tracking etc. to make it official, but did not hear the thunderclap? My apologies if I am ignorant here or others have already brought this up. Cheers.

[@pmp2559]

“In the good ole USA”, fading words now

[@thehashslingingslasher69]

Still on a down hill slope…

[@youtubestolemyusername3419]

@@thehashslingingslasher69 it must be hard to realize that Americans are mere mortals like everyone else, but its about time.

[@ALSNewsNow]

Thanks to the Democomms

[@ALSNewsNow]

@@youtubestolemyusername3419 Na. We just let too many crybaby snowflake losers in. Half this country is still far superior to the world.

[@mk6315]

@@youtubestolemyusername3419 it’s not about being mortal, it’s about being able to innovate and sustain liberty

[@WiliiamNoTell]

Great story ! Wish he would have broke mach 1. Good to see old Chuck Yeager, you can tell he was chomping at the bit sitting in the cockpit of that car. Fantastic story thank you for sharing never heard of this gentleman till today May 11th 2020

[@anythingiron69]

I was in the black rock in 1997 when the SSC did break the sound barrier and yes one hell of a sonic boom and shock wave!

[@pwengineering9070]

Stan Barrett broke the sound barrier, the reason for a subdued sonic boom is because of the design, very little wind resistance, while it was very aerodynamic. The size of the Bud car compared to the SSC and especially the difference in weight has everything to do with the magnitude of the boom. He was the first to break the record in a land vehicle. The rocket engine in the Budweiser car has no air intake, this is another reason only a few heard the sonic boom at a certain angles as it went by. The SSC has two huge air intakes for two very large turbojet engines that create huge amounts of turbulance which the Bud car does not have at all. The huge area around the intake is why the SSC had such a big boom along with it needing to run massive amounts of air through its engines. I work at Edwards AFB at Pratt & Whitney military propulsion systems, I have for 22 years.

[@richardbeck4193]

Yet SSC was a car (four wheels, two for steering). Stan Barrett's three wheel did not qualify in the same category as the historic land-speed records for cars.

[@petert3355]

@P&Wengineering, and yet the F-104, one of the most aerodynamic planes in the world, still makes a hell of a sonic boom.

[@richardpare3538]

Because it's frontal area is massively larger than the rocket car, as well as a host of other reasons.

[@pauldavidson6321]

@@richardpare3538 bullets make a sonic boom when they break the sound barrier, frontal area has nothing to do with it ,its air being compressed until it can't get out of the way ,no bang no sound barrier, awesome tech achievement and a ballsy driver.

[@rexpayne7836]

What a great video of pure dedication to fulfil his dream. 😊

[@bradleybrooks3605]

This “Hold My Beer” moment in time is brought to you by Budweiser.

[@gretzkey66]

Yeah right? Like of all sponsors that could have been, the entire thing is coated in Budweiser haha hilarious. I guess thats the power of advertising! Can't take what they did away! No matter when this vid is watched the 'weiser red is never going away!

[@ronniebeam4547]

REAL AMERICAN HERO'S!!! today we solute you Mr land speed rocket car creator!! Love it man!!!

[@buckturgidson1632]

mu = shock cone angle. mu = asin(1 / M). At M = 1.00, mu = 90.00 degrees (normal shock). At just M = 1.01, mu = 81.93 degrees. Shocks in this regime are weak but would still be distinguishable from the rocket exhaust as they sound like a single very, very low frequency thump. If the vehicle only momentarily achieved sonic speed then it IS possible that the point where this occurred was not at the location where a shock cone would have swept the observers. - 40 years in the Skunk Works

[@donlunn792]

Basically what he said was “No” he didn’t break the sound barrier on that day.Given another day, different temperatures it probably would have broken the sound barrier.No sonic bang, no shockwave.means no sound barrier broken.”On that day” But all due respect to Stan.But don’t give us a formula to try and prove it.

[@buckturgidson1632]

@@donlunn792 Let me try to explain it more simply. If he only momentarily went supersonic and the observers were not in exactly the right place then they would not hear the shock wave. Furthermore at speeds only slightly above sonic the shock sounds like a low thump not a bang!

[@bikebuilder8567]

He was FIRST

[@hunter100t]

@@buckturgidson1632 The SOS is roughly 1122 fps depending on ground height, and there is definitely a boom as you go through, anything close to the sos is buffeting and causes de stabling effects but no sonic boom. besides 666mph being a long way off the SOS at ground level, depending on altitude.

[@HOOSIERDADDY385]

Very cool and very fast. I do not remember this but i wish i did. This was a great attempt.Thanks to all who did this.

[@flymachine]

"Like a human vibrator" the best moment of this entire video - did he even know what he was saying, did 'vibrator' mean something else in the 70's?

[@thethirdman225]

​@WonkaaVision Ha! "Cultural marxism"? Jesus... People have been sticking inside themselves since the dawn of time. What the fuck has it got to do with a failed attempt at breaking the sound barrier on land.

[@ashsmitty2244]

🤣

[@operatorjeffdeathstar7759]

15:47...'Turning Stanley Barrett into a human vibrator'...LOL

[@scottprather5645]

714 miles an hour damn that's fast Has to have absolutely perfect aerodynamics

[@jesseroot1489]

It is now the year 2020. I remember watching weekend after weekend and missing many parties to see this moment.

[@RWBHere]

38:20 for the record run. 40:10 'We probably broke the speed of sound.' Thanks for the upload.

[@AppleLauda_destroyer99942]

The guy at 40:10 drank too much beer

[@lusher00]

Chuck Yeager is the reason every American pilot sounds the same on the radio. Everyone wanted to imitate that calm slow midwestern drawl he had even after declaring a major emergency.

[@richardchouinard9382]

I live on edwards AFB in the 60s , 8 years on that base that's we're I learned motor cross go Air Force 😊

[@kh40yr]

Watched it live. I was 13. The same year I seen the Red Baron Ulimited racer crash at the Reno Air Races. Steve Hinton Sr just barely survived that crash. His last words before crashing was "Tell my girl I love her" or something close to that, but , he survived. There is a KZbin of it.

[@Loulovesspeed]

I'm puzzled why there was no mention of a sonic boom? If you truly break the sound barrier, there is always a sonic boom. "We "probably" broke the sound barrier." Probably breaking it and breaking it are two entirely different things. Also, the speed recording equipment had some issues as was acknowledged. Officially and otherwise, he did not conclusively break the sound barrier. Thrust SSC was the first to break the sound barrier officially in 1997.

[@dougaltolan3017]

The measured mile speed was (according to the time keeper) 666mph. The team's radar tacho decided to spot a passing truck and read 38mph. The Air Force stated they probably broke the sound barrier. No one heard a sonic boom. Put that lot together and what you have is a plot on a graph of distinct samples that when smoothed out just nudges over mach 1, even though no actual sample reads over. If it did exceed mach 1, it was only a fleeting moment.

[@blablubb12345]

They didn't even have a measured mile. They had a way shorter time trap but the Bud Rocket went out of fuel before passing it.

[@xspeedy9137]

Where was the boom? I was expecting an earth shattering boom!

[@zonith]

15:46 "making stan barrett into a human vibrator" lol

[@dmeemd7787]

😁🤦‍♂️😂😂😂

[@russellbritten4707]

Hay buddy, I sure miss are talks we shared in Quartzsite. I really wish I had given you that triple water filter system I have. I’m selling my RV because I’m living in Dade City Florida. I paid cash for a mobile home here and my lot rent is $435 a month. It includes water garbage and lawn maintenance. I kinda wish you were here because you can live very reasonably. Hopefully you continue to feel better and better… sure is good seeing you keep these videos coming. I look forward to seeing them.

[@donaldfuller5041]

Stan Barrett the Human Vibrator!!! Ken Squier has a way with words.

[@oldschoolman1444]

I found it amusing that he was holding a clipboard at the start.

[@994206]

Why is Champion a sponsor? It’s a rocket car, it don’t have any spark plugs. I never heard a sonic boom either!

[@nigelcarren]

Plot Twist: The nearby Roswell 'U.F.O' wreckage was actually a previous land-speed attempt. 🤔 🚀Great upload thank you. Stay safe during the madness. 🇬🇧

[@billveek9518]

Not blast off, blast forward, did that rocket have champion spark plugs?

[@WingNuts2010]

Regardless what the negative comments say, from this side of the pond, I think any attempt on the land speed record shows sound engineering, pushing established limits further into the unknown. Okay, these runs were not within the rules laid down by the regulating body and therefore do not count, but give credit where credit is due.

[@qasimmir7117]

WingNuts2010 I get what you’re saying. It’s just that in stark contrast to other land speed attempts especially ThrustSSC, the Budweiser Rocket seems a failure since it produced nothing to no avail ever came out of its project.

[@WingNuts2010]

I agree somewhat, and I do not know very much about the development, build or what became of the information gleaned from this project, but I still think it is quite impressive. To those who are in America who claim that it was this truly became the worlds first supersonic land vehicle, can you let me know where to find it in the record books?

[@WingNuts2010]

P.S. I wonder who the reporter is talking about when he says at 1:32, Sir Malcolm 'Camp-Bell'? Tongue in cheek comment.

[@qasimmir7117]

WingNuts2010 Look, I don’t know what kind miserable nitwit wouldn’t find a rocket car doing over 700mph unimpressive. All they had to do was add a fourth wheel and run both ways and they would’ve had a great record. As for those who think it actually broke mach 1, you’ll be hard pressed to find one since not many people including me believe it did.

[@randallparker8116]

Who gives a crap if the FIA approves or not? US Airforce says he went over the sound barrier. I do not care what the arrogance of the FIA says

[@a.j.carter8975]

❤from uk. Nice slice of history, thank you.

[@ThePunitiveDamages]

I miss he 70s. Shit was fun.

[@crobilly19]

Im an old dude, 62 but i still think this is fuckn awesome!!!...way back in 1979. i dont suppose that this is very big deal to a lot of the younger folks, now days, like the moon landing...or the SR-71, even..but ill say it again without the explicative, this is awesome!!!! and think about this.... this was done without any...or very little computers!!!!..just the ones that these folks on their shoulders...that is what makes all these accomplishments so fuckn awesome to me.....sorry for my uncontrolled use of explicative....Carry on

[@odonovan]

If you check the official records, this run was never certified. I highly doubt Barrett broke mach 1, because they would have certainly made a big deal, in the film, about hearing the sonic boom (there wasn't one). In contrast, the "ThrustSSC," the first car to actually break the speed of sound (in 1997) was said to have generated a clearly audibie sonic boom and visible shockwave, as it passed "the barrier" and went supersonic.

[@kelharper7971]

Not having an official record doesn't mean it happens, and falling a couple miles per hour short doesn't make it any less impressive.

[@MyNameIsChristBringsASword]

This video brings back fond memories of the great dare devils like Evel Kenevel and Super Dave Osborne in the "car crusher" stunt. Those were the days.

[@pauldavidson6321]

Chuck Yeager was not an engineer and had no advanced education, he was an excellent pilot ,but that doesn't give him any more credence than some guy on the street .No boom ,no sound barrier it's that simple , they're very loud everyone would have heard it .also the the equipment used by the Airforce is not appropriate for land speed timing and was not even calibrated . The attempt was a very impressive achievement by any standards.

[@thethirdman225]

Quite right. Everyone should just forget about the radar. It doesn't measure local Mach number anyway. It's just a distraction used by the people who chose to believe this fraud. Either it made a sonic bang or it didn't and everyone knows it didn't.

[@marcschmidt7846]

Da kann ich mich noch genau erinnern, ich war damals noch ein Schulbub. Jetzt, 41 Jahre später, haben die Bilder nichts von ihrer Faszination eingebüßt. Stan Barrett hat einen Rekord in die Ewigkeit eingemeißelt, man wird sich noch in 1000 Jahren daran erinnern!

[@bkh0525]

I know there’s so much controversy surrounding this. But I choose to believe that he did it! Reminds me of my childhood.

[@shahriar1159]

The quality of this video is excellent for the time that it was made NOT for 2021

[@daveluttinen2547]

An amazing feat regardless of whether it was sanctioned or not. I have to wonder what the stresses were on the wheels that rolled at 1000 feet per second. The G-forces of centrifugal force had to be enormous. Where is this vehicle now?

[@aliensporebomb]

I read on another video that it's in a museum somewhere? I'd love to see it.

[@utjason8]

Its at the motorsports hall of fame in Talladega Alabama. Right beside the Talladega Superspeedway. It sets out on the floor and you can walk right up to it.

[@antonioromao5681]

As rodas não têm borracha. São 100% em alumínio!

[@dougaltolan3017]

For reference the wheels of Bloodhound LSR are designed to withstand 50,000 G.

[@trevor311264]

Why is it everyone who is not American accept that Andy Green was the first person to drive a car at Mach 1?

[@ZedNinetySix_]

He did 739mph, the *Speed of Sound is 762mph* at sea level. Close, but not supersonic.

[@thethirdman225]

The speed of sound is temperature-dependent. Doesn't matter though. It didn't go supersonic anyway.

[@racefanwfo]

Top speed was 666mph not supersonic

[@bobbyduke777]

I just love listening to these men speak.

[@bigbadjohn10]

Too many people think it is easy to just put a large engine in a light vehicle. Actually the most important thing is the aerodynamics to keep the vehicle on the ground but not too much. Thrust SSC took years to design and build.

[@jamesshunt5123]

Too many people know nothing. Yet they think they know everything there is to know.

[@charlesdjones1]

With all of our modern computers and precision manufacturing capabilities, we still can't create machines as marvelous as this and the Saturn V rockets which were all designed by the human mind with pen and paper.

[@GeeBeeMike]

Amazing run and amazing technological achievement to go so fast over the ground, especially in 1979 and I bow to the team and driver involved for their skill and daring to pull this off without injury or loss of life. This should not be forgotten. However, it did not break the speed of sound, which is directly proportional to temperature and the radar returns, the most reliable measurement of velocity on this particular day also registered that the vehicle didn’t go supersonic. Whilst it didn’t go for the land speed record, the team would have surely claimed it if they could. To break records rules have to followed, Thrust SSC was another leap, by another skilled and technologically capable team who built the car with the express intent of claiming the Supersonic Land Speed record which they achieved and still it stands to this day. I would never take away anyone’s achievements, especially concerning something as so audacious as this, but I think the video title is misleading and so would be any claim that the vehicle went supersonic. Close maybe, but not close enough for the claim. Well done to all involved.

[@atomicbonds6790]

I watched this live on TV, sitting in a barber's chair, getting the worst haircut of my life.

[@atomica1969]

No boom! no barrier!

[@DG121480]

That's not 100% true

[@bebo5558]

More absurd, unprovable regergetated rhetoric!

[@thethirdman225]

@@DG121480 You bet it is.

[@jmacdonough822]

Hey, the car is in the Smithsonian as breaking the sound barrier. It never was planned for qualifying for a land speed record since that would required four wheels, and two runs over a mile. In 1977 this was a pretty dangerous project. Years later, I asked General Yeager what he thought of driving the Budweiser Rocket car. He said driving the Budweiser Rocket car was the scariest thing he had ever done in his life because of the vibrations. Remember, once you press GO, there was no easing off the throttle. General Yeager reached just short of 400 mph.

[@racefanwfo]

Yeager is a fucking liar he never drove the budweiser rocket car.

[@stevenewman8957]

@@racefanwfo Ah, OK

[@martinhill7326]

This was 40 years ago and they still haven't released the telemetry they claimed proved it broke the sound barrier and the USAF have always refused to acknowledge that their radar showed that ir did. So Whilst I believe it probably exceeded the top speeds of the Blue Flame and Thrust 2, I'm inclined to think it never exceeded 700mph let alone broke the Sound Barrier

[@dmeemd7787]

Hmmm! That is REALLY interesting, I did not know that!

[@no-he5vu]

No way it dit, no way.

[@stanbarrett122]

If you are are interested in facts not fiction I would suggest the Report from the Air Force Institute of Technology, all 173 pages of it. I don't have too as I was there, so were some of the great pioneers of Space and aviation like Astonuats Gen Tom Stafford, Gen.Mike Collins, Col. Pete Knight and giants like Gen.Chuck Yeager and Gen. Slay, Gen.Phil Conley and many more witnessed the events..

[@chair8540]

looks so oldschool and simple. loved the prayer before the run. ive seen this 3 or 4 times it doesnt get old, was their any movies that were made from it?

[@channelone4655]

There was no shockwave visible in any of the videos so unfortunately their own evidence disproves their dream that the car went beyond the sound barrier. Calculated SOS values and people thinking they heard a boom don't trump the laws of physics. No pressure wave, which you'd see for hundreds of meters either side of the car on the ground, then the sound barrier he didn't reach, let alone break. That doesn't stop it being an epic achievement, just not one that was faster than sound.

[@Imnotyourdoormat]

"Looks like an airplane, without wings"... [Old Man Peabody] Back Movie to the Future circa era 1985

[@BobbyOfEarth]

By any measure, I call this 714+ mph run, a major accomplishment. ,,especially being built in some ones back yard. The Thrust SSC was built at 1000 times the cost, twice the developed HP and 8 years later, plus, they broke the speed record at the Black Rock Desert in Nevada, at over 3900 feet elevation. Barrett made this run at Rogers Dry Lake at 2275 feet elevation with greater air density ..at relative air temps and humidity. I'm not sure why Barrett and his team didn't take their Sidewinder rocket configuration back to Bonneville, where the elevation is 4665 ft.

[@ransomprigg1047]

I think they left Bonneville because it had some dips in the track that caused it to almost go airborne.

[@BobbyOfEarth]

@@ransomprigg1047 That could be true, ..I figured they left the salt during their first run at Bonneville (638mph) cause they had rubber tires.

[@jimpotter8027]

I left Edwards in ‘76. Viewing the video in ‘21. Remember the view of the flight line.

[@nicholaschriss1706]

11:38 Check out the sponsorship on the tail, It was Motorola, that was way before they were making mobile phones...it was probably when they were making/developing landmines.

[@Ozarkprepper643]

Thank you for the Memories. Not just the SOS barrier attempts, but speed attempts in all areas. Plus some of the more common memories like the GM motorhome, Vans and the station wagons. Stan Barrett's name always comes to mind, the other name would be Art Arfons. I have been a pilot since the early 70s. And had my fair share of toys and racing in different areas. From asphalt, mud and boats, too sand, and STOL. But the amount of courage to be strapped into a bullet and rocket into the unknown. Yeah! Not me! How nice it was to see the inclusion of Prayer. Something that disappeared with the so-called political correctness. Now what you hear is incantations. And don't dare mention Jesus Christ. My how times have changed.

[@RobertJamesChinneryH]

How do you know this guy's story is even true?

[@jewishmessiahyeshua]

He was the fastest man in history GREAT JOB Stan and Team

[@oliveringram3056]

Just a mention here for Andy Green, 763mph, now that took balls, and he is prepared to do it all again to achieve 1000mph. Good luck Andy.

[@Lee-70ish]

This did not break the sound barrier Thrust SSC was the first and is still the only supersonic car

[@pilotactor777]

Yup

[@AppleLauda_destroyer99942]

There was no Sonic Boom

[@spayum2]

My understanding is that this is up for debate. Both the Air Force and the in-car telemetry recorded a top speed about 10 mph faster than the speed of sound on the day that the run took place. The majority of the team was behind the car and wouldn't have been able to hear a boom. The one person stationed down range did claim to hear a boom, however. Either way, Thrust SSC was the first car to maintain a speed of mach 1 for a full mile.

[@lloydadkins885]

yes it did break the speed of sound that day

[@AppleLauda_destroyer99942]

@@lloydadkins885 no it didn't... there was no Sonic Boom

[@rlbutterfield]

Awesome documentary!

[@Left-Foot-Brake]

Love this upload! .....he certainly did NOT break the sound barrier, though.....no shockwaves!

[@genegene5339]

I was one of the Firefighters out there for this.

[@gsxerwhite]

"he keeps chewin away at that ole sound barrier" They don't make em like Chuck anymore :/

[@johnhenke6475]

I remember this. Someone on a radio station talked about it. Concluding with, "now maybe he can go and do something worth while".

[@GhettoRanger01]

He was 30 mph short of speed of sound, they knew that. The simple fact that there was no sonic boom was proof of that.

[@bebo5558]

GhettoRanger. Ahhhhhh, but there was a sonic boom reported, missed that little tid bit didn't you!

[@thethirdman225]

@@bebo5558 The only people who reported a sonic bang were Hal Needam and Stan Barrett and Barrett lied because he was in the vehicle. You can't hear the sonic boom if you are in the vehicle when it is travelling supersonic. There was no sonic boom.

[@bebo5558]

@@thethirdman225 Stan and Hal never stated they heard a sonic boom, now who's lying! Oh that's right, I forgot, you were there, Mister "I know the facts"!

[@thethirdman225]

@@bebo5558 *_"Stan and Hal never stated they heard a sonic boom, now who's lying!"_* Yes, I can at least back up my claims: www.thedrive.com/vintage/1363/video-did-hal-needhams-budweiser-rocket-really-break-the-sound-barrier _"The driver, Barrett, as well as Needham both claim to have verified the speed and heard a sonic boom, but not a single bystander interviewed in the intervening years has corroborated the account."_

[@thethirdman225]

@@bebo5558 Would you like to apologise for calling me a liar?

[@keithpenny1119]

I had a video called 'Seconds from eternity' about LSR.... but I lost it. :-(

[@Beltfedshooters]

The sound barrier is 767mph, so they were about 30mph shy of a sonic boom.

[@juniorjohnson9509]

The sound barrier speed changes with temperature, air density, etc. On that day, the Air Force determined what the sound barrier was for those conditions.

[@mopar1465]

Another idiot

[@thethirdman225]

@@juniorjohnson9509 No. The speed of sound is dependent on temperature. The USAF could not skew the variables enough to change the fact that this thing did not make a sonic bang.

[@juniorjohnson9509]

@@thethirdman225 : Air temp that morning was about 20 F, putting the speed of sound at approximately 731.996 mph. He was clocked at 739.666mph.

[@thethirdman225]

Junior Johnson You tell me how this was done then (I already know). No sonic bang = no supersonic run. Since you can hear that thing all the way through its run, there’s no way it was supersonic. Here’s what a genuine, authentic supersonic run sounds like: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qHq6lad7YsSSa68

[@KyleCowden]

Watched it from the day room at Ft Bragg... or whatever it's called this week.

[@BaddaBigBoom]

"Breaking The Sound Barrier Live from Edwards Air Force Base" ...except it didn't. Then quaint lil ole Briddin came along in 1997 and sorted it out :-)

[@bikebuilder8567]

Bwahaaa. Here it is. And like always. We're first.

[@thethirdman225]

@@bikebuilder8567 No sonic boom. No supersonic run. Get your hand off it. This is what a real supersonic run sounds like: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qHq6lad7YsSSa68

[@MAGGOT_VOMIT]

_I didn't hear a sonic boom from Thrust SSC either. So as far as i'm concerned Stan Barrett did it first. How's ol Bloodhound doin'? I hear she gotten kind old, dryrotted and ailin'. xD_

[@RadGnarRad]

@@thethirdman225 how would you know?

[@thethirdman225]

@@RadGnarRad How would I know? How would I know what? That something travelling at supersonic speeds makes a sonic bang? Basic science.

[@AP-gx7uh]

The Bud Light version quit at 67 mph. It got too scary.

[@SlippstersVideos]

I remember a rocket car called The Blue Flame

[@SlippstersVideos]

I found this about the Blue Flame kzbin.info/www/bejne/a4GpdqGwnbVsj5Y

[@630lsr]

Thank you for watching the story about a REAL world land speed record.

[@johnchalleen3278]

me too

[@sw5824]

Gary Gabelich

[@lomasck]

I just need that Boom to do it for me.

[@eddiejones4001]

When the guy said probably, you know right they're they didn't do it! But hats off to the driver for the attempt, he wasn't exactly slow was he?

[@Penguin_of_Death]

*there Why is it you morons can't seem to work out when to use there, their or they're appropriately..?

[@stevesjurset4880]

Glad I found this video.

[@gateway8833]

This is cool. I was one of the Firefighters on standby for this. Sadly, Gratefully, boring.

[@phildavenport4150]

Having sat next to medical personnel in a motor sport chase car, I agree that the only good days are boring. Nobody wants to pull a corpse from a car.

[@skyking6989]

You played a major part of history dont cut yourself short. Fire/EMS are crucial part of the team

[@justbe4481]

I remember watching this I was only nine years old ..in..1979

[@GrahamH67]

Rules around land speed records exist for a reason......to remove all the "did he / didn't he" controversy being voiced years later. No denying he was incredibly fast......but it aint't official. If it that was me expending so much time, effort and money as well as the risk......every i would be dotted and t crossed...…..and if I broke the record / sound barrier...…..it would be nailed on., no dispute!

[@thethirdman225]

Yeah, I'd want it in the record book too. It was nothing more than a high risk publicity stunt.

[@bebo5558]

GrahamH. The Write Brothers weren't being governed, by an official sanctioning body and they were "the first" to do something incredible! I don't think Hal Nedham cared about "jumping though hoops" and the official rules, and a second return run!

[@GrahamH67]

Bebo May, true.....the Wright Brothers weren’t being sanctioned by an official body.....but their “first” was a bit different. They either got of the ground and flew.....or didn’t. Stan Barrett’s run was always going to be open to argument as he didn’t follow established rules.

[@bebo5558]

@@GrahamH67 The Write Brothers "first" was no different, Stan either broke the sound barrier or he didn't! Only the people that were there, will ever know, if he did or didn't! I think the military was told not to get involved or be in the middle, because Hal rubbed people the wrong way and didn't like to follow rules, they knew win or lose, it was going to be a shit storm of controversy! I personally think Stan did reach Speed of Sound, because there were people at the end of the course, that said they heard the sonic boom, but I guess it will never be proven!

[@GrahamH67]

@@bebo5558 exactly.......Stan's run will never be proven.......because he didn't follow the set rules. The Wright Brothers "first" was very differemt to Stan's.........the Wright Bropthers either got off the ground and flew or did not.......the eyes of at least a few witnesses would be verifictaion enough. Yes, Stan was fast.....very fast.......but was it just under 600 mph......just over 600mph.......650 mph.......750mph........who knows and can prove it. No-one becasue a reliable process that could have proven it one way or the other wasn't followed.......a few people at the end of the course said they heard a sonic boom.......I'd be more impressed if those people were parallel to the track of the car. Watch Richard Nobles record run in Thrust SSC and you'll see what I mean.

[@spybaz]

It's funny that the audio from clips back then had no bottom end. None of these runs registered anything on my subwoofer. I'd love to have heard this live at the event.