Frank Kendall Everest , Jr . Brigadier General Frank Kendall " Pete " Everest Jr . ( August 9 , 1920 – October 1 , 2004 ) was a U . S . Air Force officer who is best remembered as an aeroengineer and test pilot during the 1950s . Early years . General Everest was born in Fairmont , West Virginia , in 1920 . After he graduated from Fairmont Senior High School in 1938 , he attended Fairmont State College for one year . He later studied engineering at West Virginia University to prepare himself for a flying career . He graduated from the Armed Forces Staff College , Norfolk , Virginia , in 1956 . Military career . He entered United States Army Air Forces aviation cadet pilot training on November 11 , 1941 , graduated and received a commission on July 3 , 1942 . Among his classmates in Class 42 - F was future ETO ace Robert S . Johnson . After Curtiss P - 40 aircraft training , he was sent to North Africa and flew 94 combat missions in Africa , Sicily and Italy with the 314th Fighter Squadron , 324th Fighter Group . During that tour of duty he shot down two German Ju - 52 transports on April 18 , 1943 , and damaged another . In May 1944 he was assigned to a fighter squadron at Venice , Florida as an instructor . He asked for combat duty again and was assigned to the China - Burma - India Theater of Operations . There he was assigned to command the 17th Provisional Fighter Squadron , 5th Provisional Fighter Group of the Chinese - American Composite Wing at Chinkiang , China . This wing consisted of both USAAF and Republic of China pilots flying in mixed elements . He completed 67 combat missions and destroyed four Japanese aircraft before his plane was shot down by ground fire in May 1945 . He was captured and tortured as a Japanese prisoner of war before being repatriated at the end of hostilities . Following a rest leave , General Everest was assigned in February 1946 to the Flight Test Division at Wright - Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio as a test pilot . He took part in many experimental tests of the Bell X - 1 and established an unofficial world altitude record of 73 , 000 feet . In September 1951 he was transferred to the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards Air Force Base , California , and became the chief Air Force test pilot as head of the Flight Test Operations Division . During his stay at Edwards , General Everest tested the X - 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 and 5 ; XF - 92 and YB - 52 . He also took part in test programs for the F - 88 , 100 , 101 , 102 , 104 and 105 ; the B - 52 , 57 and 66 aircraft . On October 29 , 1953 , he established a world speed record of 755 . 149 mph in a YF - 100 . General Everest test - flew the Bell X - 1B to a speed of Mach 2 . 3 ( 2 . 3 times the speed of sound ) in December 1954 , making him the second fastest man in the world , Later flights in the Bell X - 2 rocket plane established him as " the fastest man alive " when he attained a new unofficial speed record of 1 , 957 mph or Mach 2 . 9 . He was transferred to Hahn Air Base , Germany , in March 1957 , as commander of the 461st Fighter Squadron of the 36th Fighter Wing . He was assigned to North Africa in July 1958 as a group commander and later became deputy for operations at Wheelus Air Base , Libya . He became director of operations , 401st Tactical Fighter Wing , England Air Force Base , Louisiana , in January 1961 , upon returning to the United States . General Everest next commanded the 4453d Combat Crew Training Wing at MacDill Air Force Base , Florida , and in June 1964 he transferred with the wing to Davis - Monthan Air Force Base , Arizona In May 1965 he was transferred to Nellis Air Force Base , Nevada , to become commander of the 4520th Combat Crew Training Wing . In June 1966 General Everest became director of aerospace safety in the Office of the Deputy Inspector for Inspection and Safety , Norton Air Force Base , California He was transferred to the Pentagon in January 1969 as assistant director ( Operational Test and Evaluation ) , Office of the Director of Defense Research and Engineering . General Everest assumed command of Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Service , of the Military Airlift Command , at Scott Air Force Base , Illinois , in April 1970 . He was promoted to the temporary grade of brigadier general effective November 1 , 1965 , with date of rank October 29 , 1965 . General Everest ' s service - wide nickname was " Pete " . Honors . His military decorations and awards include the Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster , Distinguished Flying Cross with two oak leaf clusters , Air Medal with seven oak leaf clusters , Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster , Purple Heart , Distinguished Unit Citation Emblem with two oak leaf clusters , Air Force Outstanding Unit Award Ribbon , and the Chinese Aviation Award . He is a command pilot with more than 9 , 000 flying hours and a graduate of the U . S . Army Parachutists School at Fort Benning , Georgia . In addition to these and other military honors , General Everest has been recognized repeatedly for his contributions to aerospace progress . He was chosen as one of 1955s " Ten Outstanding Young Men " by the U . S . Junior Chamber of Commerce . In 1956 the U . S . Chamber of Commerce named him one of the nation ' s " Greatest Living Americans . " A year later he was awarded both the Harmon Trophy and the Octave Chanute Award . In 1988 , he won the Godfrey L . Cabot Award . He was inducted into the Aerospace Walk of Honor in 1991 . In 2009 , Everest received the USAF Test Pilot School ' s Distinguished Alumnus Award from class 08B . This award is presented bi - annually to a USAF TPS graduate who has made significant and lasting contributions to aviation science and the flight test community . Was no relation to General Frank F . Everest