On September 7th, 1956, US Air Force Capt Iven Kincheloe set a new altitude record of 126,000 feet in the Bell X-2 rocket powered aircraft. He would later be awarded the Mackay Trophy for 1956 for the most meritorious Air Force flight of the year by the National Aeronautics Association. The X-2, built and tested by Bell aircraft in the Wheatfield plant (only blocks from the Niagara Aerospace Museum), would soon become the first aircraft in the world to reach Mach 3.
Come see the museum’s historical display on the Bell X-1 and X-2 and learn more about these record breaking aircraft!