Chuck Yeager does not often concedes superiority to anyone else. He has always been solid in his opinions of his own ability, and quick to point out perceived short comings in the piloting skills of others.
But even he had to cut one man something, and he did it in a foreword he wrote for the book Forever Flying in 1996.
"Bob Hoover, the greatest pilot I ever saw."
Aviation has now lost its finest exponent, with the death yesterday of Bob Hoover at the age of 94.
For many Australians, their lasting image of Hoover will be his stunning display of energy conservation at the Australian International Airshow, flying aerobatics in a Shrike Commander with the engines shut down. It was an act he performed all over the world.
But Bob Hoover was so much more than just an air show pilot; he was a decorated fighter pilot who flew 58 missions in WWII before being shot down and captured. Sent to Stalag Luft I, Hoover escaped 16 months after incarceration by stealing a German fighter and flying it back to friendly territory. Yes, Bob Hoover lived the life that screenwriters dare to imagine.
Post-war, Hoover was assigned to the team to break the sound barrier using the Bell X-1, a team that included Yeager and engineer Jack Ridley. Hoover was flying chase the day Yeager made the first great leap into supersonic flight.
A great test pilot in his own right, Bob Hoover always demonstrated complete mastery over an aeroplane, whether it was his beloved P-51 Mustang Ol' Yeller or his Shrike. Never was this more obvious that his feat of successfully pouring iced tea whilst simultaneously performing a barrell roll. Such was his touch that positive g was maintained the whole way through the roll. Many other pilots have tried to emulate Hoover, with varying success.
Hoover performed his last air show in 2000, but people still talk about the smoothness and exactness of his performances as if they were recalling a memory first recorded only the day before.
These are the things that Bob Hoover will be remembered for because they were the things he did in public. Hoover's greatest contribution to aviation may just be the work he did behind the scenes.
In 2014, Hoover was honoured with a documentary recounting his career: The Bob Hoover Project – Flying the Feathered Edge. Such is the respect and regard for him that other aviation luminaries queued to contribute. Harrison Ford, Carroll Shelby, Burt Rutan, Dick Rutan, Col. Bud Day, Gene Cernan, Clay Lacy and Sean D. Tucker were all there to help tell the Hoover story.
With Hoover's death yesterday, the pool of aviation test pilots that pushed old envelopes and created new ones over the burning sands of Muroc Lake in the 1940-50s is getting smaller. It was a time of great heroics and great tragedy, and it took a certain type of pilot to get the job done.
Bob Hoover was one of those, and aviation around the world would be in a poorer state today had it not been for him.