Robert M. White, 1924 - 2010

“The old Irishman went home at 11:55 last night.”

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U.S. Air Force Major Bob White in the cockpit of an X-15 after landing at Rogers Dry Lake, at Edwards Air Force Base in California. NASA

Former World War II POW, Korean War veteran, and Air Force test pilot Bob White died on March 17, St. Patrick's Day. "The old Irishman went home at 11:55 last night," his son, Greg, wrote in an e-mail to relatives and friends this morning. Major General White retired from the Air Force in 1981 with a wealth of medals, decorations, trophies, and commendations. Pilot and amateur historian Al Hallonquist spoke with White about his 1962 record-setting X-15 flight, and wrote an "as told to" memoir, which appears in our May 2010 issue. Seeing his story in print, says Hallonquist, "meant so much to him."

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