Multiple-award-winning test pilot and aeronautical engineer famous for
setting four speed records before becoming the first man to reach Mach
2 (twice the speed of sound) in 1953 while flying the D558-II. He is
also noted for flying the experimental X-15 rocket airplane in the late
1950s. Crossfield helped to design the fully pressurized suit that
served as the prototype of those worn by the Mercury, Gemini, and
Apollo astronauts. He was named a vice-president in 1968 of Eastern
Airlines. In the 1960s the Crossfields settled in Coral Gables,
Florida.
