Colonel William J. Knight Autographs, Memorabilia & Collectibles

X-15 Flight Pilot, Deceased

Pilot Pete Knight in front of X-15 William J. "Pete" Knight, who became the world's fastest man on Oct. 3, 1967, while flying the X-15.

Knight, then an Air Force major who was part of an elite cadre of hypersonic X-15 pilots, made frontier-busting flights setting aeronautical records that stood unchallenged for years. His record-breaking Mach 6.7 (nearly seven times the speed of sound) flight remains the highest speed ever attained by a manned aircraft.

Knight, along with several other X-15 pilots, earned astronaut wings while flying the rocket-powered plane.