66 years ago today two air force pilots from Des Moines broke the speed record from Los Angeles to New York, making a nonstop flight in less than four hours.
According to Lt. Col. Robert R. Scott, 34, flying a Republic F-84F Thunderstreak jet fighter, turned in the fastest time — 3 hours 46 minutes and 33 seconds. He averaged 649 miles an hour.
Just one minute behind was another Des Moines pilot, Maj. Robert C. Ruby, 32. His time was 3:47:33.
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The old mark for the 2,445-mile route was 4:06:16, set Jan 2, 1954, by an air national guard pilot.
A third pilot who shattered the old mark is Capt. Charles T. Hudson, 33, of Gulfport, Miss., who made the flight in 3:49:53.
Eight air force Thunderstreaks left Los Angeles in a mass assault on the record. Five dropped out through failure to make contact with refueling planes or other reasons. All reportedly landed safely.
While setting a Los Angeles–New York record, Scott failed to beat the navy’s time from San Diego, Calif., to New York — 2,438 miles, or seven miles shorter than his flight.
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The pilots said they could have made faster time except for slow and obsolete in-flight refueling tanker planes.
Ruby and Hudson also said they could have made faster time if the tank planes were more modern.
Hudson and Ruby carried extra gas tanks and made one in-flight refueling each. Scott carried no extra gas and had two in-flight refuelings.
