Robert A. “Bob” Hoover died this morning at age 94. Described by both Jimmy Doolittle and Chuck Yeager as the greatest stick-and-rudder pilot who ever lived, Hoover delighted airshow audiences for decades with his deft flying of the yellow P-51 Ole Yeller and his stunning “energy management” aerobatic act in a Shrike Commander with both engines shut down and the props feathered.
In one of his final public appearances, Hoover attended the Reno National Championship Air Races last month, the event at which, for many years, as pace pilot for the Unlimiteds, he herded the racers down the chute and onto the course before telling them, “Gentlemen, you have a race.” He looked frail last month, but his hallmark smile beamed as strong as ever from beneath his broad-brimmed straw hat as he gently bumped knuckles with fans.
Hoover’s wife of 68 years, Colleen, died in March this year.