In August 1955, Boeing test pilot Tex Johnston barrel-rolled the 367-80 prototype over Lake Washington in a move that helped seal the jet age for Boeing.
The 1954 Comet disasters near Elba revealed the hidden mechanics of metal fatigue and permanently transformed how every pressurized airliner is designed and certified.
On August 6, 1955, Boeing test pilot Tex Johnston barrel-rolled a 100,000-pound prototype jet over Lake Washington - and in doing so, sold the airplane that launched the jet age.
Radio Hangar explores Tex Johnston Rolls the Dash Eighty, the Day Boeing's Chief Test Pilot Barrel-Rolled a Jet Transport Over Lake Washington to Sell the Jet Age.
On August 7, 1955, Boeing test pilot Tex Johnston rolled a prototype jet airliner twice over Lake Washington, executing one of the most consequential demonstrations in aviation history.