The U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School (TPS) graduated the following notable alumni who made significant contributions to the aerospace field. The school's mission is to produce experimental test pilots, flight test engineers, and flight test navigators to lead and conduct test and evaluation of aerospace weapon systems.[1] The school was established on September 9, 1944, as the Flight Test Training Unit at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (AFB) in Dayton, Ohio.[2] To take advantage of the uncongested skies and superb flying weather, the school was moved on February 4, 1951, to its present location at Edwards Air Force Base in the Mojave Desert of Southern California.[2] Edwards AFB is the home of the Air Force Test Center and has been an integral part of flight testing since June 25, 1951.[3]
Between 1962 and 1972, the Test Pilot School expanded its role to include astronaut training for military test pilots.[4] Thirty-seven TPS graduates of this era were selected for the U.S. space program, and twenty-six went on to earn astronaut's wings by flying in the X-15, Gemini, Apollo, and Space Shuttle programs.[5] Although the school no longer trains astronauts, many TPS graduates since 1972 have been selected by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for duties in space. The school encourages applications from civilians, personnel from other U.S. military services, and individuals from foreign countries.[6] An exchange program allows selected students to attend other test pilot schools including the United States Naval Test Pilot School, the United Kingdom's Empire Test Pilots' School, and France's EPNER.[7]
The following graduates of the USAF Test Pilot School are listed in the roles for which they are most notable.[8] These roles include:
| Service | ||
|---|---|---|
| RCAF | Royal Canadian Air Force | |
| USAF | United States Air Force | |
| USAFR | United States Air Force Reserve | |
| USN | United States Navy | |
| USNR | United States Navy Reserve | |
| USMC | United States Marine Corps | |
| Civilians | From specified U.S. contractors and government agencies | |
| Rank | Military rank | For individuals who have served in the armed forces. The rank shown is current at the time this list was created and is subject to change. |
| "n/a" | For civilians who have not served in the armed forces and therefore do not have military rank. | |
| Class | Year/Letter | The year and order in which a class started. For example, 07A was the first of two classes to start in 2007.[10] |
| Roman Numeral | Four Aerospace Research Pilot School (ARPS) classes designated I, II, III, and IV, that prepared students for crewed spaceflight operations. These classes were dropped when the USAF lost its crewed spaceflight mission.[11] | |
| MOL | Classes to train military astronauts of the Manned Orbital Laboratory (MOL) program. MOL was cancelled in 1969 before any of the astronauts went into space.[12] | |
| AFIT | The USAF TPS selects up to eight students per year to attend the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. These individuals attend 15 months of class work and thesis preparation prior to completing the USAF TPS curriculum. | |
| "n/a" | For faculty who taught at USAF TPS but were never students of the school. |
Individual was killed in a work-related (aviation) accident.
Individual was killed in a work-related (aviation) accident.
| Name | Service | Rank | Class | Notable events | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USAF | Captain | 54B | First to exceed Mach 3. Speed record of Mach 3.2 in X-2 | [117] [118] | ||
| USAF | Major General | 46B | Father of Systems Engineering at Wright Field. F-86 speed record | [119] | ||
| USAF | Major | 45 | United States' highest-scoring air ace. Medal of Honor recipient | [120] | ||
| USAF | Major | 86A | F-22 Raptor lead test pilot and F-117 Nighthawk chief test pilot | [121] | ||
| USAF | Brig. General | 46J | B-29 commander on mission to break sound barrier. Chief USAF test pilot for YB-49 flying wing | [122] | ||
| USAF | Colonel | 45 | Tested over twenty German and Japanese aircraft during World War II. First military pilot to fly XP-86. First jet air race. First transport of air mail by jet | [123] [124] | ||
| USAF | Captain | 45 | Namesake of Edwards Air Force Base | [125] | ||
| USAF | Brig. General | 46D | Speed record of Mach 2.9 in the X-2. Subject and co-author of The Fastest Man Alive | [126] | ||
| USAF | Brig. General | 52B | Altitude record of 85360feet in the B-58. XB-70, YF-12, 747 Space Shuttle Carrier Aircraft testing | [127] | ||
| Lockheed | n/a | 63A | Piston engine speed record of 776km/h in an F8F-2. Low altitude speed record of 1590km/h in an F-104 | [128] [129] | ||
| USAF | Lieutenant | 46C | Flew chase during the Mach one flight. Named "the greatest stick-and-rudder man who ever lived" by Jimmy Doolittle. Noted air show pilot in Shrike Commander and P-51 | [130] | ||
| USAF | Major | 46C | 1948 world speed record in the F86. First flights of the YF102, YF106, and F111 | [131] | ||
| USAF | Lt Colonel | 96B | First female test pilot for NASA's DFRC flying on the SOFIA project. Test pilot on White Knight Two and Cosmic Girl | [132] [133] | ||
| Lockheed | n/a | 45 | Lockheed chief test pilot. P-38, P-80, XF-90, XF-104, U-2 testing | [134] | ||
| USNR | 64A | LLRV, XB-70, and YF-12 testing | [135] [136] | |||
| USAF | Major | 45G | X-1A, X-1B, X-4, X-5 testing | [137] | ||
| USMC | Lt Colonel | 85A | Harrier testing; owner and air show pilot of privately owned Harrier | [138] | ||
| USAF | Major General | 82A | First pilot to shoot down a satellite from an aircraft; commander of Air Force Flight Test Center | [139] [140] | ||
| NASA | n/a | 63A | M2-F1, M2-F2, HL-10 lifting body flights | [141] | ||
| USAF | Colonel | 45D | F-80 Shooting Star, F-102 Delta Dagger, F-4E testing | [142] | ||
| USAF | Colonel | 46A | Project engineer for the team that broke the sound barrier | [143] | ||
| USAF | Captain | 54A | First flight of the A-12; flight test of A-12, YF-12 and SR-71 Blackbird; Chief test pilot of Lockheed Skunk Works | [144] [145] [146] | ||
| USAF | Colonel | 49D | Speed and altitude records testing the YF-12 and SR-71 | [147] | ||
| USAF | Colonel | 46 | P-80 Shooting Star, P-82 distance/speed record, Lockheed solar-powered aircraft | [148] | ||
| USAF | Brig. General | 46F | Co-pilot on the first flight of the B-52 Stratofortress. First military pilot to fly the B-47 Stratojet, B-50 Superfortress, B-52 Stratofortress, and the prototype of the KC-135 Stratotanker | [149] | ||
| FAA | n/a | 49C | Test Pilot on America's First Commercial Jet Aircraft, the Boeing 707 | [150] | ||
| USAF | Brig. General | 46C | Fighter ace; first to travel faster than sound during level flight; first to reach Mach 2.5; Commandant of Aerospace Research Pilot School | [151] |
| Name | Service | Rank | Class | Notable events | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USAF | Lt General | 66B, MOL | Strategic Defense Initiative director | [152] | ||
| USAF | Lt General | 64C | Vice commander Air Force Systems Command, senior advisor to the NASA administrator | [153] [154] | ||
| USAF | Lt General | 62C, IV | Vice commander Strategic Air Command, TPS Commandant | [155] | ||
| USAF | Colonel | 51A, 53C | TPS Commandant. Rescue of Navy Lt. Dieter Dengler | [156] [157] | ||
| USAF | Colonel | 45G | Top American fighter ace in Europe during World War II | [158] [159] | ||
| USAF | General | 66B, MOL | Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff | [160] | ||
| USAF | General | 65C | North American Aerospace Defense Command | [161] | ||
| USAF | General | 67B | Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force | [162] | ||
| USAF | General | 66B | Air Force Materiel Command | [163] |
| Name | Service | Rank | Class | Notable events | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USAF | 47F | Author of two aviation books. Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum deputy director | [164] [165] [166] | |||
| USAF | 64A | Author of five aviation books, three on flight testing including "Contrails Over the Mojave," one on combat in Vietnam and one on a test pilot building a church. | [167] [168] [169] [170] |