How long is USAF test pilot School?
48-week
The USAF TPS curriculum is designed to grant a Master of Science degree in flight test engineering through the Air Force’s Air University at the end of the 48-week course. Students are required to take all of the 20 offered courses to graduate. This is a total of 50 credit hours for the 48-week course.
How do you get selected for test pilot school?
Students are selected from a highly qualified applicant pool. One year of additional education and experience may provide the additional qualifications needed for admission. Please read the information found here on the USAF web site, AFI 99-107, and the TPS Board Announcement thoroughly.
How much does an Air Force test pilot make?
The average salary for a Test Pilot is $73,769 per year in United States, which is 43% lower than the average US Air Force salary of $130,223 per year for this job.
Do we still have test pilots?
About TPS. The fundamental key to success in aerospace flight test and evaluation is the individual member of the flight test team: the flight test pilot, of course, but nowadays the trained flight test engineer and navigator as well.
Can civilians go to test pilot school?
These schools train positions ranging from combat systems officers to flight officers, and from drone pilots to flight test engineers. It’s worth noting that a small number of Air Force civilians and Navy civilians (civilian employees) are eligible to train as flight test engineers at the test pilot schools.
How much do Navy pilots make?
Salary Ranges for Navy Pilots The salaries of Navy Pilots in the US range from $18,953 to $509,998 , with a median salary of $91,635 . The middle 57% of Navy Pilots makes between $91,635 and $231,073, with the top 86% making $509,998.
How hard is it to become a test pilot?
The life of a test pilot demands painstaking excellence, exhaustive training and extensive education. Based on the job title alone, test pilots have one of the world’s most thrilling jobs. But Top Gun moments aside, the life of a test pilot demands painstaking excellence, exhaustive training and extensive education.
Do you have to have 20 20 Vision to be an Air Force pilot?
The United States Air Force has these vision requirements for its service members: Pilots must have uncorrected distance visual acuity no worse than 20/70 in each eye, and vision must be correctable to 20/20 or better in each eye. Near vision for pilots must be 20/20 or better without corrective lenses.
Can a civilian attend test pilot school?
The School was established in 1981 to meet the flight test training needs of both the US and international aerospace communities. NTPS students and customers come from a variety of backgrounds including military organizations, aerospace industry, governments, certification agencies, and even private citizens.
Who was the best test pilot?
Charles Elwood Yeager
Charles Elwood Yeager (/ˈjeɪɡər/ YAY-gər, February 13, 1923 – December 7, 2020) was a United States Air Force officer, flying ace, and record-setting test pilot who in 1947 became the first pilot in history confirmed to have exceeded the speed of sound in level flight.
Where was the Air Force test pilot school?
The school was established on September 9, 1944, as the Flight Test Training Unit at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (AFB) in Dayton, Ohio. 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.
Is the Air Force test center at Edwards impossible?
Without him – and increasingly, her – the fundamental work of the Air Force Test Center at Edwards Air Force Base would literally be impossible.
Where do female Air Force test pilots graduate?
They have an innate understanding of high-performance aircraft and are always pushing the boundaries on performance. They are the small cadre of flight test pilots who graduate from the US Air Force Test Pilot School (TPS) at Edwards Air Force Base in California — and this year they include a group of five women, a record number.
What is a flight test in the Air Force?
Flight test involves the Air Force’s top pilots, engineers and combat systems operators working to develop and test the newest technology needed to maintain and improve aircraft flying qualities and performance.
