“I’ve shot three thousand dead-stick landings in this airplane,” he said. Bob Hoover, the war veteran, test pilot, and grand old man of air show routines, last Friday saddled up in his famous Shrike Commander 500S for one last flight, The Flying Life‘s Jamie Beckett told AVweb. Hoover, along with co-pilot Steve Clegg, were wheels-up at 9:15 a.m. to deliver the famously green-and-white business aircraft from its temporary digs at the International Sport Aviation Museum in Lakeland, Fla., to the Air and Space museum in Washington, D.C. As Sun ‘n Fun Vice President Greg Harbaugh explains it, the aircraft will be displayed 30 feet above the museum floor in a familiar pose, inverted with both props feathered. Once a backup and chase pilot for the sound-barrier-breaking Bell X-1, Hoover’s logbook includes time in over 300 types. Hoover had offered the aircraft to the D.C. museum two years ago, but lack of room at the facility caused delay. Look for more details in an upcoming issue of The Flying Life magazine.
Hoover’s Shrike Makes Final Flight
Key Takeaways:
- Aviation legend Bob Hoover completed his final flight in his famous Shrike Commander 500S.
- Hoover, with co-pilot Steve Clegg, delivered the aircraft from Lakeland, Florida, to the Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.
- The Shrike Commander will be displayed at the museum inverted with both props feathered, replicating Hoover's iconic air show maneuver.
- Hoover is a celebrated war veteran, test pilot, and air show performer, known for flying over 300 aircraft types and pioneering "dead-stick landings."
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