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Empire Test Pilots' School

January 06, 2023

The Empire Test Pilots' School (ETPS) is a British training school for test pilots and flight test engineers of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft at MoD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire, England. It was established in 1943, the first of its type. The school moved to RAF Cranfield in October 1945, then to the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough in July 1947, before returning to Boscombe Down on 29 January 1968.[1]

Logo
Active21 June 1943 (1943-06-21) – present
Country United Kingdom
BranchMinistry of Defence (operated by QinetiQ)
TypeTest pilot school
RoleTraining of test pilots and flight test engineers
Part ofAir Warfare Centre
Home stationMOD Boscombe Down
Nickname(s)ETPS
Motto(s)Learn to test; test to learn
Aircraft

Its motto is "Learn to test; test to learn".

ETPS is run by the MoD and defence contractor QinetiQ under a long-term agreement.

History

In 1943, Air Marshal Sir Ralph Sorley, Controller, Research and Development, MAP, formed the "Test Pilots' Training Flight" at RAF Boscombe Down after many pilots died testing the many new aircraft introduced during the Second World War.[2]

On 21 June 1943, the unit became the Test Pilots' School within the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE) at Boscombe Down.[3] The school was "to provide suitably trained pilots for testing duties in aeronautical research and development establishments within the service and the industry".[4] It graduated one group of students, the Number 1 Course, which began in mid-1943 and formally ended on 29 February 1944,[5] before the school's name was changed to the "Empire Test Pilots' School" (ETPS) on 28 July 1944.[1]

The first training course, held by the Commandant, Wing Commander Samuel "Sammy" Wroath with G. Maclaren Humphreys, a civilian, as Technical Instructor, was initially attended by 18 pilots, drawn largely from the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy but included three civilian attendees (all from the Bristol Aeroplane Company).[6] Five students found the standard of maths required on the course to be too high and left within the first week;[7] the 13 students who completed the first course comprised 11 from the RAF (including one American, Sqn Ldr JC Nelson, who was serving with one of the Eagle Squadrons) and two from the FAA.[8] Of those who attended No. 1 Course, five eventually died testing aircraft.[9]

 
The Armstrong Whitworth Apollo served the ETPS as a multi-engined trainer at Farnborough during the mid-fifties

Due to the rapid growth of the A&AEE, at Boscombe Down, the school moved to RAF Cranfield in October 1945. On 12 July 1947, it was attached to the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough, where it remained for almost 21 years, flying a wide variety of aircraft types, before returning to Boscombe Down on 29 January 1968.[1]

Until 1963, the course catered to both fixed-wing and rotary-wing pilots, with the latter specializing late in the course. In 1963, a separate rotary-wing course was established,[10] followed in 1974 by a course for Flight test engineers. The school also offers a number of short courses "to meet specific Air Test and Evaluation (AT&E) training needs of the wider flight test community".[11]

In 2001, ETPS was included with those research departments sold off by the Government to Carlyle Group during the formation of QinetiQ. It is now a partnership between QinetiQ and the UK MoD.

The Empire Test Pilots' School was the first of its kind, and was soon followed by other similar schools, such as the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, California in 1944, the United States Naval Test Pilot School in Maryland in 1945 and the EPNER in France (École du Personnel Navigant d'Essais et de Réception) in 1946. Other schools in India (Indian Air Force Test Pilot School in Bangalore) and Japan were established in later years. Some of these schools operate exchange programmes, which expand the variety of aircraft the students have available to them for gaining flight test experience.[12]

In addition to such student exchanges, British, French and American schools share access to their aircraft, so that students can experience a wider range of aircraft types during their respective courses.[13]

ETPS commandants

 
RJ100 in 2013
 
Qinetiq/ETPS BAe Avro 146 RJ70 arrives at the 2017 Royal International Air Tattoo, England. LTPA on the forward fuselage indicates the Long Term Partnering Agreement between Qinetiq and the UK Ministry of Defence

Commandants' names prior to 1968 from the ETPS 25th anniversary brochure;[14] 1968–88, from Wing Commander "Robby" Robinson's "Tester Zero One".[15] The term "Commandant" was succeeded in 1976 by "Chief Instructor" and in 1980 by "Officer Commanding".

From Until Rank/style Name Decorations Service Country ETPS course
1943 1944 Wg Cdr S. Wroath AFC RAF United Kingdom –
1944 1945 Gp Capt. JFX McKenna AFC RAF United Kingdom –
1945 1947 Gp Capt. HJ Wilson AFC RAF United Kingdom –
1947 1948 Gp Capt. S R Ubee AFC RAF United Kingdom –
1949 1950 Gp Capt. LS Snaith AFC RAF United Kingdom –
1950 1953 Gp Capt. A. E. Clouston DSO, DFC, AFC RAF New Zealand –
1953 1957 Gp Capt. S. Wroath CBE, AFC RAF United Kingdom –
1957 1959 Gp Capt. RE Burns CBE, DFC RAF United Kingdom –
1960 1961 Capt. KR Hickson AFC and bar RN United Kingdom No. 4 (1946)
1962 1965 Gp Capt. RA Watts AFC RAF United Kingdom No. 6 (1947)
1966 1969 Gp Capt. W. J. P. Straker AFC RAF United Kingdom No. 9 (1950)
1969 1970 Capt. P.C.S. Chilton AFC RN United Kingdom No. 7 (1948)
1971 1973 Gp Capt. D.P. Hall AFC RAF United Kingdom No. 18 (1959)
1973 1975 Gp Capt. H.A. Merriman CBE, AFC RAF United Kingdom No. 16 (1957)
1975 1976 Gp Capt. M.K. Adams AFC RAF United Kingdom No. 22 FW/No. 1 RW (1963)
1976 1977 Wg Cdr J.A. "Robby" Robinson AFC RAF United Kingdom No. 21 (1962)
1977 1980 Wg Cdr J.E. Watts-Phillips – RAF United Kingdom No. 23 FW (1964)
1981 1985 Wg Cdr R.S. Hargreaves Bsc(Eng), MRAeS – United Kingdom EPNER 1965–66
1985 1988 Wg Cdr J.W.A. Bolton BSc, MRAeS RAF United Kingdom No. 33 FW (1974)
1988 1991 Wg Cdr W.L.M. Mayer AFC, MRAeS RAF United Kingdom No. 7 RW (1969)
1991 1996 Wg Cdr Robert P. Radley – RAF United Kingdom –
1996 1998 Wg Cdr Laurie Hilditch – RAF United Kingdom (USNTPS Class 100 1991)
1998 2001 Wg Cdr Dave Best OBE, Legion of Merit RAF United Kingdom No. 48 FW (1989)
2001 2005 Cdr 'Charlie' Brown n/a RN United Kingdom No. 47 FW/No. 26 RW (1988)
2006 2007 Cdr CP Maude n/a RN United Kingdom n/a
2007 2009 Cdr Phil Hayde n/a RN United Kingdom n/a
2010 2012 Cdr Simon Sparkes[16] n/a RN United Kingdom No. 37 RW (1999)
2012 2014 Cdr Mark (Sparky) MacLeod n/a RN United Kingdom No. 41 RW (2003)
2014 2017 Cdr Stephen (Croc) Crockatt n/a RN United Kingdom No. 40 RW (2002)
2017 2019 Cdr Stuart Irwin n/a RN United Kingdom No. 50 RW (2012)
2019 - Cdr Steve Moseley n/a RN United Kingdom USNTPS Class 143 (2013)

Aircraft

 
AgustaWestland AW-109E Power (ZE416) of the Empire Test Pilots' School at the 2017 RIAT, England
 
An ETPS Gripen at RIAT 2008
 
Since retired SEPECAT Jaguar T2 in 2005

As at 18 August 2019 ETPS uses the following types of aircraft:[17]

Aircraft Origin Variant(s) No operated Notes
Rotary Wing
AW139 Italy AW139 1
AW109 Italy AW109S, AW109E Power 3
AS350 Écureuil France H125 4
Bell 412 United States 412 2 One operated from England, second operated in Canada.
Bell 205 United States 205 1 Operated in Canada alongside the NRC.
Fixed Wing
Pilatus PC-21 Switzerland PC-21 2 Custom developed with a flight test instrumentation suite for ETPS.
Grob G120 Germany G120TP 2 Custom developed with a flight test instrumentation suite for ETPS.
BAE 146 UK RJ70/100 2 Used as a flying classroom for Flight test engineer students.
DA42 Austria DA42 1 Used to give test pilot students experience with general aviation aircraft.
Saab Gripen Sweden Gripen D 1
Learjet United States Learjet 45 4 Operated by Calspan in the US.

ETPS graduates

ETPS graduates who have made significant contributions to aviation and/or space exploration.

To collapse the expanded table, click on "hide"; to expand the collapsed table, click on "show" in the Name column header.

Name Course Year Comments
Baudry, Patrick No. 37 FW 1978 Flew aboard NASA's Space Shuttle 1985 mission STS-51-G.
de Winne, Frank No. 51 FW 1992 The first European Space Agency astronaut to command a space mission when he served as commander of the 2009 International Space Station Expedition 21, his second ISS mission.
Cheli, Maurizio No. 47 FW 1988 European Space Agency astronaut aboard Space Shuttle mission STS-75 (with Claude Nicollier, another ETPS graduate) in 1995.
Duke, Neville No. 4/5 1946/7 World War II Fighter ace, later test pilot at Hawker Aircraft. On 7 September 1953, Duke set a new world air speed record of 727.63 mph (1,171.01 km/h), flying Hunter WB188.
Giddings, Michael No. 4/5 1946/7 Air Marshal Sir Kenneth Charles Michael Giddings KCB, OBE, DFC, AFC & Bar
Goodhart, Nicholas No. 4 1946 Rear Admiral H.C.Nicholas 'Nick' Goodhart, CB, Legion of Merit, FRAeS, RN rtd, invented the mirror-sight deck landing system for aircraft carriers; record-breaking glider pilot; holder of the Royal Aero Club's silver medal and the FAI's Paul Tissandier Diploma for "those who have served the cause of Aviation in general and Sporting Aviation in particular, by their work, initiative, devotion or in other ways"
Haigneré, Jean-Pierre No. 40 FW 1981 French Air Force pilot, later CNES and ESA cosmonaut on the 1993 Franco-Russian Altaïr and 1999 Soyuz TM-29 missions to the Mir space station
Hammond, L. Blaine Jr. No. 40 FW 1981 USAF pilot and NASA astronaut; flew on Space Shuttle missions STS-39 and STS-64
Iven Carl Kincheloe Jr. No. 12 1954 USAF test pilot
McCulley, Michael J. – – Captain, US Navy and NASA astronaut who was pilot of the 1989 Space Shuttle mission STS-34
Muehlberg, John R. No. 2 1944/45 Lt Col. USAF, first Commandant of the US Air Force Test Pilot School
Nicholson, Peter No. 32 FW 1973 Air Vice-Marshal Peter Nicholson, appointed Air Commander Australia on 9 April 1996; admitted as an Officer of the Order of Australia in the 1999 Australia Day Honours[18]
Nicollier, Claude No. 47 FW 1988 First astronaut from Switzerland; has flown on four Space Shuttle missions: STS-46, STS-61, STS-75 (with Maurizio Cheli, another ETPS graduate) and STS-103; full professor of Spatial Technology at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne from 2007
Peake, Timothy No. 43 RW 2005 Former British Army Air Corps helicopter pilot, he is the first British citizen to be selected as an astronaut by ESA.
Pogue, Bill No. 22 FW 1963 Pilot of Skylab 4 (1973–74).
Tognini, Michel No. 41 FW 1982 French and ESA astronaut who served on the 1992 Soyuz TM-15 and 1999 Space Shuttle Columbia STS-93 missions.
Twiss, Peter No. 3 1945 On 10 March 1956 in the Fairey Delta 2, a supersonic delta-winged research plane, Twiss raised the world air speed record from 822.1 mph (1,323 km/h) to 1,132 mph (1811 km/h). The FD2 was the first aircraft to exceed 1,000 mph in level flight.
Worden, Al No. 23 FW 1964 Command module pilot for the 1971 Apollo 15 moon mission.
Żurakowski, Janusz No. 2 1944/45 Highly decorated Polish and RAF World War II Spitfire pilot, later test pilot with Glosters (Meteor, Javelin) and Avro Canada (Arrow).

Course trophies and awards

Recipients' names prior to 1968 are taken from the ETPS 25th anniversary brochure.[14] Others up to and including 1983, unless otherwise stated, from Rawlings & Sedgwick 1991, pp. 124–36.

In the tables of trophy winners the following abbreviation are used in the course names:

  • FW:  Fixed wing
  • RW:  Rotary wing
  • FTE: Flight test engineer

Legend
      The individual was killed in an aviation accident.

McKenna Trophy

In memory of the second Commandant of the School, Group Captain JFX McKenna, AFC, killed in a flying accident while serving in that post.[a][19] Initially the school awarded the McKenna Trophy to the best fixed-wing student, but it is now open to the rotary-wing course as well.

To expand the collapsed table, click on "show" in the Year column header; to collapse again, choose "hide".

Edwards Trophy

This trophy is awarded by the Edwards Air Force Base in California to the student who makes the greatest progress on the course.

To expand the collapsed table, click on "show" in the Year column header; to collapse the expanded table, click on "hide".

Hawker Hunter Trophy

This trophy, a model of the Hawker Hunter, was first awarded in 1960 by the Hawker Aircraft Company to the student who wrote the best Preview Handling report on the course. Since 1966 syndicates of two or three students have carried out the Preview Exercise; the trophy is awarded to the best team.

To expand the collapsed table, click on "show" in the Year column header; to collapse again, click on "hide".

Patuxent Shield

This trophy, instituted in 1961, is awarded by the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School, Patuxent River, to the runner-up for the McKenna Trophy.

To expand the collapsed table, click on "show" in the Year column header; to collapse again, click on "hide".

Westland Trophy

The Westland Trophy, originally presented by Westland Aircraft Limited in 1963, is awarded to the best all-round student on the Rotary Wing Course.

To expand the collapsed table, click on "show" in the Year column header; to collapse again, click on "hide".

Sir Alan Cobham Award

Presented to ETPS in 1974 by Michael Cobham, son of Sir Alan Cobham, this trophy is awarded to the fixed wing student who demonstrates the highest standard of flying during the course. The trophy is a silver model of a Short Singapore II flying-boat, which was originally awarded to Sir Alan and his wife in 1928 "in commemoration of their epic circuit of Africa flight in 1927 in such a flying-boat".[45]

To expand the collapsed table, click on "show" in the Year column header; to collapse the expanded table, click on "hide".

Dunlop Trophy

The Dunlop Trophy, initially awarded by the Dunlop Rubber company in 1974, is awarded to the best student on each Flight Test Engineers' course.

To expand the collapsed table, click on "show" in the Year column header; to collapse the expanded table, click on "hide".

See also

References

Notes

  1. ^ On 19 January 1945 flying a North American Mustang IV, when an ammunition box cover detached at high speed, causing structural failure of a wing. The aircraft crashed on the perimeter of Old Sarum airfield.
  2. ^ Sqn Ldr Whittome died in a flying accident in a Spitfire in 1948.[22]
  3. ^ Flt Lt Hough died in a flying accident in a Sycamore in 1953.[23]
  4. ^ Ross died in a flying accident in a Javelin in 1954.[24]
  5. ^ Capt. Fryklund died in a flying accident in 1954.[24]
  6. ^ Capt. Bignamini died in a flying accident.[24]
  7. ^ Died in an accident in an F-100 Super Sabre while on Reserve training with the Air National Guard in 1965.[25]
  8. ^ Died in a flying accident on 10 August 1976.[39]
  9. ^ A. Shaked died in a flying accident in a Dornier Do 28.[40]

Citations

  1. ^ a b c Sturtivant 1997, p. 112.
  2. ^ . ETPS. QinetiQ. Archived from the original on 7 March 2010. Retrieved 3 April 2010.
  3. ^ Sturtivant 1997, p. 44.
  4. ^ Johnson 1986, p. 19.
  5. ^ Johnson 1986, p. 31.
  6. ^ Johnson 1986, p. 23.
  7. ^ Johnson 1986, p. 25.
  8. ^ Johnson 1986, p. 27.
  9. ^ Johnson 1986, p. 32.
  10. ^ Field, Hugh (8 March 1973). "Learning to Test". Flight International. Flight global. 103 (3339): 340. Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  11. ^ . ETPS. QinetiQ. Archived from the original on 12 May 2010. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  12. ^ Johnson 1986, pp. 39, 40.
  13. ^ "Learning to Test". Flight International. Flight global. 158 (4757): 41. 4 December 2000. Retrieved 7 December 2010.
  14. ^ a b ETPS 1968.
  15. ^ Robinson 2007, p. 280.
  16. ^ a b "CO ETPS", Our training team, QinetiQ, 2010.
  17. ^ "Our Aircraft". ETPS. Retrieved 18 August 2019.
  18. ^ Australian Chapter, The Association of Old Crows.
  19. ^ , Test Flying Memorial of British test pilots and engineers dead while test-flying, archived from the original on 2 August 2009, retrieved 26 February 2010 .
  20. ^ "DR Cuming", The Canberra Times (biographical detail), 17 April 2002[permanent dead link].
  21. ^ "Test Pilots Dine – Passing-out Dinner and Presentation of McKenna Trophy at Cranfield". Flight Magazine. 95 (LI): 238. 20 March 1947. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
  22. ^ Rawlings & Sedgwick 1991, p. 126.
  23. ^ Rawlings & Sedgwick 1991, p. 127.
  24. ^ a b c Rawlings & Sedgwick 1991, p. 128.
  25. ^ Rawlings & Sedgwick 1991, p. 130.
  26. ^ a b c d e f Rawlings & Sedgwick 1991, p. 83.
  27. ^ a b c d e f g "ETPS – The McKenna Dinner". Flight Magazine. 102 (3329): 917. 28 December 1972. Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  28. ^ . AIAA Savannah. 2010. Archived from the original on 16 June 2011. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
  29. ^ a b c d e f g "ETPS McKenna Dinner". Flight International. 113 (3592): 172. 21 January 1978. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  30. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Boscombe Down Pilots' Award". Flight International. 114 (3640): 2239. 22 December 1978. Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  31. ^ a b c d e f g h "The Empire Test Pilots' School End-of-Course McKenna Dinner". Flight International. 119 (3741): 10. 17 January 1981. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
  32. ^ a b c d e f Johnson 1986, p. 270.
  33. ^ a b c "NASA Astronauts with Texas Roots". Texas Space Grant Consortium. 1 August 2004. Retrieved 5 April 2010.
  34. ^ "Astronaut biography – Frank de Winne". European Space Agency. 2010. Retrieved 5 April 2010.
  35. ^ "Royal Navy to celebrate centenary of naval aviation with flypast over HMS Illustrious in London". Your Defence News. Red Mist Media. 1 May 2009. Retrieved 6 April 2010.[permanent dead link]
  36. ^ a b c d "Trophies", The Daily Telegraph, 14 December 2001
  37. ^ "Top Stories: Best Test Pilot". Airforce News. AU: Defence Public Affairs and Corporate Communication; Directorate of Internal Communications. 45 (3). 13 March 2003. Retrieved 10 January 2011.
  38. ^ "Pilots". The Yakovlevs (air display team). 2010. Retrieved 5 April 2010.[permanent dead link]
  39. ^ Rawlings & Sedgwick 1991, p. 131.
  40. ^ Rawlings & Sedgwick 1991, p. 133.
  41. ^ "Newsletter" (PDF). The Hawker Association. 2006. Retrieved 5 April 2010.
  42. ^ Farley, John (18 February 2007). "Aviators Extraordinary". PPRuNe. Retrieved 5 April 2010.
  43. ^ "Astronaut biography – Michel Tognini". European Space Agency. 21 November 2005. Retrieved 5 April 2010.
  44. ^ . Empire Test Pilots' School. QinetiQ. Archived from the original on 18 April 2011. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
  45. ^ a b Rawlings & Sedgwick 1991, p. 90.
  46. ^ "Test & Research Pilots" (Blogger), Flight Test Engineers (web log), January 2008.
  47. ^ Leo, Jeoh (2007). "Tech Edge: Near-Space, Near Future". Pointer: Journal of the Singapore Armed Forces. Government of Singapore. 33 (1). Retrieved 11 April 2010.
  48. ^ Alle Hens: Logboek – Wie Wat Waar (PDF) (in Dutch), Royal Netherlands Navy, 2009, p. 35, retrieved 11 April 2010[permanent dead link]

Bibliography

  • The Empire Test Pilots' School – Twenty Five Years (brochure) (4 ed.), HMSO for The Empire Test Pilots' School, 1968 {{citation}}: |format= requires |url= (help), 68 pp.
  • Johnson, Brian (1986), Test Pilot, BBC Books, p. 287, ISBN 0-563-20502-4.
  • Rawlings, John; Sedgwick, Hilary (1991), Learn to Test, Test to Learn – The History of the Empire Test Pilots' School, Shrewsbury: Airlife, p. 138, ISBN 1-85310-080-3.
  • Robinson, JA 'Robby' (2007), Tester Zero One, Old Forge Publishing, ISBN 978-1-906183-00-4.
  • Sturtivant, Ray (1997), Royal Air Force Flying Training and Support Units, Air Britain (Historians), ISBN 0-85130-252-1.

External links

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Empire Test Pilots' School.
  • Official website
  • ETPS Association, UK.
  • QinetiQ.
  • Service biography of Air Marshal Sir Ralph S. Sorley, K.C.B., O.B.E., D.S.C, D.F.C. (1898–1974), RAF Web.
  • Aircraft & Systems Testing Establishment, Bharat rakshak. The Indian Air Force's flight evaluation and test training school, Bangalore.
  • "Exchange of Test Pilots Proposed", Flight, Flight global, 1948.
  • "Torch in the Sky", Flight (article), Flight global, 1949 on the purpose and practice of the ETPS.

January 06, 2023
empire, test, pilots, school, etps, british, training, school, test, pilots, flight, test, engineers, fixed, wing, rotary, wing, aircraft, boscombe, down, wiltshire, england, established, 1943, first, type, school, moved, cranfield, october, 1945, then, royal,. The Empire Test Pilots School ETPS is a British training school for test pilots and flight test engineers of fixed wing and rotary wing aircraft at MoD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire England It was established in 1943 the first of its type The school moved to RAF Cranfield in October 1945 then to the Royal Aircraft Establishment Farnborough in July 1947 before returning to Boscombe Down on 29 January 1968 1 LogoActive21 June 1943 1943 06 21 presentCountryUnited KingdomBranchMinistry of Defence operated by QinetiQ TypeTest pilot schoolRoleTraining of test pilots and flight test engineersPart ofAir Warfare CentreHome stationMOD Boscombe DownNickname s ETPSMotto s Learn to test test to learnAircraftAirbus H125 AgustaWestland A 109 Power Elite Boeing Apache AH 64 AH1 Avro RJ70 RJ100 BAE Systems Hawk T1 Bell 412 HAR2 Dassault Dornier Alpha Jet Diamond DA42 Hawker Hunter Panavia Tornado GR4 Saab JAS 39 Gripen Short Tucano T1 Its motto is Learn to test test to learn ETPS is run by the MoD and defence contractor QinetiQ under a long term agreement Contents 1 History 2 ETPS commandants 3 Aircraft 4 ETPS graduates 5 Course trophies and awards 5 1 McKenna Trophy 5 2 Edwards Trophy 5 3 Hawker Hunter Trophy 5 4 Patuxent Shield 5 5 Westland Trophy 5 6 Sir Alan Cobham Award 5 7 Dunlop Trophy 6 See also 7 References 7 1 Notes 7 2 Citations 7 3 Bibliography 8 External linksHistory EditIn 1943 Air Marshal Sir Ralph Sorley Controller Research and Development MAP formed the Test Pilots Training Flight at RAF Boscombe Down after many pilots died testing the many new aircraft introduced during the Second World War 2 On 21 June 1943 the unit became the Test Pilots School within the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment A amp AEE at Boscombe Down 3 The school was to provide suitably trained pilots for testing duties in aeronautical research and development establishments within the service and the industry 4 It graduated one group of students the Number 1 Course which began in mid 1943 and formally ended on 29 February 1944 5 before the school s name was changed to the Empire Test Pilots School ETPS on 28 July 1944 1 The first training course held by the Commandant Wing Commander Samuel Sammy Wroath with G Maclaren Humphreys a civilian as Technical Instructor was initially attended by 18 pilots drawn largely from the Royal Air Force RAF and the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy but included three civilian attendees all from the Bristol Aeroplane Company 6 Five students found the standard of maths required on the course to be too high and left within the first week 7 the 13 students who completed the first course comprised 11 from the RAF including one American Sqn Ldr JC Nelson who was serving with one of the Eagle Squadrons and two from the FAA 8 Of those who attended No 1 Course five eventually died testing aircraft 9 The Armstrong Whitworth Apollo served the ETPS as a multi engined trainer at Farnborough during the mid fifties Due to the rapid growth of the A amp AEE at Boscombe Down the school moved to RAF Cranfield in October 1945 On 12 July 1947 it was attached to the Royal Aircraft Establishment Farnborough where it remained for almost 21 years flying a wide variety of aircraft types before returning to Boscombe Down on 29 January 1968 1 Until 1963 the course catered to both fixed wing and rotary wing pilots with the latter specializing late in the course In 1963 a separate rotary wing course was established 10 followed in 1974 by a course for Flight test engineers The school also offers a number of short courses to meet specific Air Test and Evaluation AT amp E training needs of the wider flight test community 11 In 2001 ETPS was included with those research departments sold off by the Government to Carlyle Group during the formation of QinetiQ It is now a partnership between QinetiQ and the UK MoD The Empire Test Pilots School was the first of its kind and was soon followed by other similar schools such as the U S Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base California in 1944 the United States Naval Test Pilot School in Maryland in 1945 and the EPNER in France Ecole du Personnel Navigant d Essais et de Reception in 1946 Other schools in India Indian Air Force Test Pilot School in Bangalore and Japan were established in later years Some of these schools operate exchange programmes which expand the variety of aircraft the students have available to them for gaining flight test experience 12 In addition to such student exchanges British French and American schools share access to their aircraft so that students can experience a wider range of aircraft types during their respective courses 13 ETPS commandants Edit RJ100 in 2013 Qinetiq ETPS BAe Avro 146 RJ70 arrives at the 2017 Royal International Air Tattoo England LTPA on the forward fuselage indicates the Long Term Partnering Agreement between Qinetiq and the UK Ministry of Defence Commandants names prior to 1968 from the ETPS 25th anniversary brochure 14 1968 88 from Wing Commander Robby Robinson s Tester Zero One 15 The term Commandant was succeeded in 1976 by Chief Instructor and in 1980 by Officer Commanding From Until Rank style Name Decorations Service Country ETPS course1943 1944 Wg Cdr S Wroath AFC RAF United Kingdom 1944 1945 Gp Capt JFX McKenna AFC RAF United Kingdom 1945 1947 Gp Capt HJ Wilson AFC RAF United Kingdom 1947 1948 Gp Capt S R Ubee AFC RAF United Kingdom 1949 1950 Gp Capt LS Snaith AFC RAF United Kingdom 1950 1953 Gp Capt A E Clouston DSO DFC AFC RAF New Zealand 1953 1957 Gp Capt S Wroath CBE AFC RAF United Kingdom 1957 1959 Gp Capt RE Burns CBE DFC RAF United Kingdom 1960 1961 Capt KR Hickson AFC and bar RN United Kingdom No 4 1946 1962 1965 Gp Capt RA Watts AFC RAF United Kingdom No 6 1947 1966 1969 Gp Capt W J P Straker AFC RAF United Kingdom No 9 1950 1969 1970 Capt P C S Chilton AFC RN United Kingdom No 7 1948 1971 1973 Gp Capt D P Hall AFC RAF United Kingdom No 18 1959 1973 1975 Gp Capt H A Merriman CBE AFC RAF United Kingdom No 16 1957 1975 1976 Gp Capt M K Adams AFC RAF United Kingdom No 22 FW No 1 RW 1963 1976 1977 Wg Cdr J A Robby Robinson AFC RAF United Kingdom No 21 1962 1977 1980 Wg Cdr J E Watts Phillips RAF United Kingdom No 23 FW 1964 1981 1985 Wg Cdr R S Hargreaves Bsc Eng MRAeS United Kingdom EPNER 1965 661985 1988 Wg Cdr J W A Bolton BSc MRAeS RAF United Kingdom No 33 FW 1974 1988 1991 Wg Cdr W L M Mayer AFC MRAeS RAF United Kingdom No 7 RW 1969 1991 1996 Wg Cdr Robert P Radley RAF United Kingdom 1996 1998 Wg Cdr Laurie Hilditch RAF United Kingdom USNTPS Class 100 1991 1998 2001 Wg Cdr Dave Best OBE Legion of Merit RAF United Kingdom No 48 FW 1989 2001 2005 Cdr Charlie Brown n a RN United Kingdom No 47 FW No 26 RW 1988 2006 2007 Cdr CP Maude n a RN United Kingdom n a2007 2009 Cdr Phil Hayde n a RN United Kingdom n a2010 2012 Cdr Simon Sparkes 16 n a RN United Kingdom No 37 RW 1999 2012 2014 Cdr Mark Sparky MacLeod n a RN United Kingdom No 41 RW 2003 2014 2017 Cdr Stephen Croc Crockatt n a RN United Kingdom No 40 RW 2002 2017 2019 Cdr Stuart Irwin n a RN United Kingdom No 50 RW 2012 2019 Cdr Steve Moseley n a RN United Kingdom USNTPS Class 143 2013 Aircraft Edit AgustaWestland AW 109E Power ZE416 of the Empire Test Pilots School at the 2017 RIAT England An ETPS Gripen at RIAT 2008 Since retired SEPECAT Jaguar T2 in 2005 As at 18 August 2019 ETPS uses the following types of aircraft 17 Aircraft Origin Variant s No operated NotesRotary WingAW139 Italy AW139 1AW109 Italy AW109S AW109E Power 3AS350 Ecureuil France H125 4Bell 412 United States 412 2 One operated from England second operated in Canada Bell 205 United States 205 1 Operated in Canada alongside the NRC Fixed WingPilatus PC 21 Switzerland PC 21 2 Custom developed with a flight test instrumentation suite for ETPS Grob G120 Germany G120TP 2 Custom developed with a flight test instrumentation suite for ETPS BAE 146 UK RJ70 100 2 Used as a flying classroom for Flight test engineer students DA42 Austria DA42 1 Used to give test pilot students experience with general aviation aircraft Saab Gripen Sweden Gripen D 1Learjet United States Learjet 45 4 Operated by Calspan in the US ETPS graduates EditETPS graduates who have made significant contributions to aviation and or space exploration To collapse the expanded table click on hide to expand the collapsed table click on show in the Name column header Name Course Year CommentsBaudry Patrick No 37 FW 1978 Flew aboard NASA s Space Shuttle 1985 mission STS 51 G de Winne Frank No 51 FW 1992 The first European Space Agency astronaut to command a space mission when he served as commander of the 2009 International Space Station Expedition 21 his second ISS mission Cheli Maurizio No 47 FW 1988 European Space Agency astronaut aboard Space Shuttle mission STS 75 with Claude Nicollier another ETPS graduate in 1995 Duke Neville No 4 5 1946 7 World War II Fighter ace later test pilot at Hawker Aircraft On 7 September 1953 Duke set a new world air speed record of 727 63 mph 1 171 01 km h flying Hunter WB188 Giddings Michael No 4 5 1946 7 Air Marshal Sir Kenneth Charles Michael Giddings KCB OBE DFC AFC amp BarGoodhart Nicholas No 4 1946 Rear Admiral H C Nicholas Nick Goodhart CB Legion of Merit FRAeS RN rtd invented the mirror sight deck landing system for aircraft carriers record breaking glider pilot holder of the Royal Aero Club s silver medal and the FAI s Paul Tissandier Diploma for those who have served the cause of Aviation in general and Sporting Aviation in particular by their work initiative devotion or in other ways Haignere Jean Pierre No 40 FW 1981 French Air Force pilot later CNES and ESA cosmonaut on the 1993 Franco Russian Altair and 1999 Soyuz TM 29 missions to the Mir space stationHammond L Blaine Jr No 40 FW 1981 USAF pilot and NASA astronaut flew on Space Shuttle missions STS 39 and STS 64Iven Carl Kincheloe Jr No 12 1954 USAF test pilotMcCulley Michael J Captain US Navy and NASA astronaut who was pilot of the 1989 Space Shuttle mission STS 34Muehlberg John R No 2 1944 45 Lt Col USAF first Commandant of the US Air Force Test Pilot SchoolNicholson Peter No 32 FW 1973 Air Vice Marshal Peter Nicholson appointed Air Commander Australia on 9 April 1996 admitted as an Officer of the Order of Australia in the 1999 Australia Day Honours 18 Nicollier Claude No 47 FW 1988 First astronaut from Switzerland has flown on four Space Shuttle missions STS 46 STS 61 STS 75 with Maurizio Cheli another ETPS graduate and STS 103 full professor of Spatial Technology at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne from 2007Peake Timothy No 43 RW 2005 Former British Army Air Corps helicopter pilot he is the first British citizen to be selected as an astronaut by ESA Pogue Bill No 22 FW 1963 Pilot of Skylab 4 1973 74 Tognini Michel No 41 FW 1982 French and ESA astronaut who served on the 1992 Soyuz TM 15 and 1999 Space Shuttle Columbia STS 93 missions Twiss Peter No 3 1945 On 10 March 1956 in the Fairey Delta 2 a supersonic delta winged research plane Twiss raised the world air speed record from 822 1 mph 1 323 km h to 1 132 mph 1811 km h The FD2 was the first aircraft to exceed 1 000 mph in level flight Worden Al No 23 FW 1964 Command module pilot for the 1971 Apollo 15 moon mission Zurakowski Janusz No 2 1944 45 Highly decorated Polish and RAF World War II Spitfire pilot later test pilot with Glosters Meteor Javelin and Avro Canada Arrow Course trophies and awards EditRecipients names prior to 1968 are taken from the ETPS 25th anniversary brochure 14 Others up to and including 1983 unless otherwise stated from Rawlings amp Sedgwick 1991 pp 124 36 In the tables of trophy winners the following abbreviation are used in the course names FW Fixed wing RW Rotary wing FTE Flight test engineerLegend The individual was killed in an aviation accident McKenna Trophy Edit In memory of the second Commandant of the School Group Captain JFX McKenna AFC killed in a flying accident while serving in that post a 19 Initially the school awarded the McKenna Trophy to the best fixed wing student but it is now open to the rotary wing course as well To expand the collapsed table click on show in the Year column header to collapse again choose hide Winners of the McKenna Trophy Year Course Rank style Name Decorations Employer Country1945 No 3 Wg Cdr Derek Randal Cuming 20 AFC RAAF Australia1945 No 4 No award short course1946 47 No 5 Sqn Ldr WM Foster 21 DFC RCAF Canada1947 No 6 Sqn Ldr RW Whittome b OBE DFC RAF United Kingdom1948 No 7 Lt J Elliot RN United Kingdom1949 No 8 Cdr JG Smith USN US1950 No 9 Flt Lt GA Heck RCAF Canada1951 No 10 Flt Lt JK Hough c AFC RAF United Kingdom1952 No 11 n a RJ Ross d RAF United Kingdom1953 No 12 Capt BOJ Fryklund e Swedish Air Force Sweden1954 No 13 Flt Lt VJ Hill DFC RAAF AustraliaNo 13 Capt Riccardo Bignamini f Italian Air Force Italy1955 No 14 Lt RE Moore USN1956 No 15 Lt Cdr JS Humphreys RN United Kingdom1956 No 15 Lt JA Hablot French Navy France1957 No 16 Lt Cdr TC Evans AFC RN United Kingdom1958 No 17 Flt Lt CV Gole Indian Air Force India1959 No 18 Sqn Ldr HR Radford RAF United Kingdom1960 No 19 Lt Cdr LN Hoover USN US1961 No 20 Flt Lt CC Rustin RAF United Kingdom1962 No 21 Capt JI Meeker g USAF US1963 No 22 FW Flt Lt MK Adams RAF United Kingdom1964 No 23 FW Flt Lt TE Riddihough RAF United Kingdom1965 No 24 FW Flt Lt SC Fisher RAAF Australia1966 No 25 FW Capt DT Ward USAF US1967 No 26 FW Lt Cdr VW Klein USN US1968 No 27 FW Flt Lt AA Clark RAF United Kingdom1969 No 28 FW Flt Lt R Ledwidge RAF United Kingdom1970 Mr AR Baker Civil Aviation Branch Canada1971 No 30 FW Sqn Ldr Pete Sedgwick 26 RAF United Kingdom1972 No 31 FW Flt Lt Terry Farquharson 27 RAAF Australia1973 No 32 FW Flt Lt Peter Nicholson RAAF Australia1974 No 33 FW Flt Lt John WA Bolton RAF United Kingdom1975 No 34 FW Lt Cdr Tom Morgenfeld 28 USN USA1976 No 35 FW Lt Paul Habert French Navy France1977 n a Flt Lt Trevor Ralston 29 South African Directorate of Civil Aviation South Africa1978 No 37 FW Flt Lt Graham Tomlinson 30 RAF United Kingdom1979 D Reeh RAF United Kingdom1980 No 39 FW F O John Blackburn 31 RAAF Australia1981 J Barnett RAF United Kingdom1982 RN Woodward RAAF Australia1983 PD Dye RAF United Kingdom1984 No 22 RW Maj Mario Renzo Ottone Italian Air Force Italy1985 No 44 FW Flt Lt Dave Southwood 32 RAF United Kingdom1986 1987 1988 No 47 FW Capt Maurizio Cheli 33 Italian Air Force Italy1989 No 48 FW Flt Lt Dave Best RAF United Kingdom1990 1991 1992 n a n a Frank De Winne 34 Belgian Air Force Belgium1993 No 52 FW Sqn Ldr Rhys Williams RAF United Kingdom1994 1995 1996 n a Lt Cdr Paul Stone 35 RN United Kingdom1997 No 56 FW Flt Lt Thomas Lyons RAF United Kingdom1998 1999 No 58 FW Maj Richard Ljungberg SwAF Sweden2000 2001 No 60 FW Capt Todd C Ericson 36 page needed USAF USA2002 No 61 FW Flt Lt Chetan Takalkar 37 RAAF Australia2003 No 62 FW Flt Lt Stephen Austin RAF United Kingdom2004 No 63 FW Flt Lt Jim Schofield 38 RAF United Kingdom2005 2006 2007 n a n a Tytus Rogoyski citation needed RAAF Australia2008 2009 No 47 RW Lt Cdr Ben Lewis RN United Kingdom2010 No 48 RW Flt Lt Russell Cripps RAF United Kingdom2011 No 49 RW Capt ENM Vink RNLAF NetherlandsEdwards Trophy Edit This trophy is awarded by the Edwards Air Force Base in California to the student who makes the greatest progress on the course To expand the collapsed table click on show in the Year column header to collapse the expanded table click on hide Winners of the Edwards Trophy Year Course Rank style Name Decorations Employer Country1958 No 17 Flt Lt RA Whyte RAF United Kingdom1959 No 18 Flt Lt JM Henderson RAF United Kingdom1960 No 19 Flt Lt GM Morrison RAF United Kingdom1961 No 20 Flt Lt PJ Farris RAF United Kingdom1962 No 21 Flt Lt PM Ramachandran Indian Air Force India1963 No 22 FW Flt Lt P Ashoka Indian Air Force IndiaNo 1 RW Flt Lt RF Mundy RAF United Kingdom1964 No 23 FW Lt PEH Banfield RN United Kingdom1965 No 24 FW Lt W Davies USN USA1966 No 4 RW Lt PJG Harper RN United Kingdom1967 No 26 FW Flt Lt ADA Cooke RAF United Kingdom1968 HD Williams Army Air Corps United Kingdom1969 VF Champion French Navy France1970 W Spychiger Swiss Air Force Switzerland1971 No 30 FW Lt Cdr Chris Hagg 26 Royal Swedish Navy Sweden1972 n a Capt Ashalom Rom 27 Israeli Air Force Israel1973 PC Tait RAF United Kingdom1974 Flt Lt Ian E Jak Frost RAF United Kingdom1975 B Belluci Italian Air Force Italy1976 FC Lentz US Navy USA1977 n a Flt Lt John Foley 29 RAAF Australia1978 n a Lt Nigel Armall Culliford 30 RN United Kingdom1980 n a Maj Horst Hickl 31 German Air Force Federal Republic of Germany1981 No 19 RW Capt N Talbot Army Air Corps United Kingdom1982 No 41 FW Flt Lt Simon J Wood RAF United Kingdom1983 JA Goddard RAF United Kingdom1984 1985 No 44 FW Flt Lt R Meiklejohn 32 Canadian Armed Forces Canada1986 No 24 RW Lt Sigmund Lockert Royal Norwegian Air Force Norway1991 No 15 FTE n a Anthony L Dyer United KingdomHawker Hunter Trophy Edit This trophy a model of the Hawker Hunter was first awarded in 1960 by the Hawker Aircraft Company to the student who wrote the best Preview Handling report on the course Since 1966 syndicates of two or three students have carried out the Preview Exercise the trophy is awarded to the best team To expand the collapsed table click on show in the Year column header to collapse again click on hide Winners of the Hawker Hunter Trophy Year Course Rank style Name Decorations Employer Country1960 IH Keppie RAF United Kingdom1961 HWA Deacon Royal Navy United Kingdom1962 G Varin French Air Force France1963 P Ashoka Indian Air Force India1964 MW Buss US Air Force US1965 SC Fisher RAAF Australia1966 DW Gates RAF United Kingdom SG Pearce h RAF United Kingdom NRJ Wingate RAF United Kingdom1967 GJ McIntosh RAF United Kingdom RC O Day Royal Australian Navy Australia1968 BPL Stokes RAF United Kingdom RV Richardson RAAF Australia GA Peterkin RAAF Australia1969 Mr K Koglin Federal Republic of Germany BA Wilson RAAF Australia U Yaari Israeli AF Israel1970 RG Davis RAF United Kingdom B le Cornec French AF France HF Rammensee Federal Republic of Germany1971 Capt Eugene Coeuret 26 French Air Force FranceNo 30 FW Sqn Ldr Pete Sedgwick 26 RAF United Kingdom1972 n a Mr Gunter Sprenger 27 German MoD Federal Republic of Germanyn a Flt Lt Paul Buckland 27 RAF United Kingdomn a Colin Hague 27 RN United Kingdom1973 RH Beazley RAF United Kingdom JH Finney US Navy USA1974 No 12 RW Lt Dave Beswick RN United KingdomFlt Lt Mike Betts RAF United Kingdom1975 No 34 FW Flt Lt Chris Yeo RAF United Kingdomn a Maj Sven Hjort Royal Danish Air Force Denmark1976 AV Awalegaonkar Indian Air Force India MC Hagen RN United Kingdom FC Lentz US Navy USA A Shaked i Israeli AF Israel1977 n a Capt Chris Roberts 29 41 42 RAF United Kingdomn a Capt Agostino Frediani 29 Italian Air Force Italy1978 n a Capt Pino Marani 30 Italian Air Force Italyn a Flt Lt Graham Tomlinson 30 RAF United Kingdom1979 AR Foster RAF United KingdomNo 6 FTE P Kemsley United Kingdom1980 n a F O John Blackburn 31 RAAF Australian a Lt Cdr Paul Habel 31 USN USA1981 No 40 FW Sqn Ldr Jean Pierre Haignere French Air Force France1982 TP Newman RAF United Kingdom M Tognini French AF France1983 1984 No 22 RW Maj Mario Renzo Ottone Italian Air Force Italy1985 No 44 FW Sqn Ldr Les Evans 32 RAF United KingdomNo 44 FW Cmdt Serge Aubert 32 French Air Force France1987 No 46 FW Lt SN Hargreaves Royal Navy United Kingdom1988 No 47 FW Capt Maurizio Cheli 33 Italian Air Force Italy 1991 No 15 FTE n a Anthony L Dyer United KingdomNo 15 FTE Capt Lee Obst Canadian Air Force CanadaNo 15 FTE Capt Peter Ware Singapore Air Force Singapore1993 No 31 RW Flt Lt Pete Rowlinson RAF United KingdomNo 31 RW Capt Dave Fawcett A A Avn AustraliaNo 31 RW Capt Georg Fuchs G A Avn Germany1995 No 54 FW Maj Tjebbe Speedy Haringa RNLAF NetherlandsCapt Bjorn Rygnestad RNoAF Norway1997 No 56 FW Flt Lt Thomas Lyons RAF United KingdomFlt Lt Bruce McDonald RAF United Kingdom2001 No 60 FW Capt Todd C Ericson 36 USAF USANo 25 FTE Gordon Stewart QinetiQ United KingdomPatuxent Shield Edit This trophy instituted in 1961 is awarded by the U S Naval Test Pilot School Patuxent River to the runner up for the McKenna Trophy To expand the collapsed table click on show in the Year column header to collapse again click on hide Winners of the Patuxent Trophy Year Course Rank style Name Decorations Employer Country1961 No 20 FW Flt Lt JEC Mayes RAF United Kingdom1962 No 21 FW Sqn Ldr B Carroll RAF United Kingdom1963 No 22 FW Flt Lt JF Farley RAF United Kingdom1964 No 23 FW Flt Lt DL Bywater RAF United KingdomCapt AM Worden USAF US1965 No 24 FW Capt Lamberto Fe d Ostiani Italian Air Force Italy1966 No 25 FW Flt Lt JT Lewis RAF United Kingdom1967 No 26 FW Sqn Ldr BJ Graf RAAF Australia1968 CA Wheal RN United Kingdom1969 JD Blake RAF United Kingdom1970 CJ Furse RAAF Australia1971 Mr Carl Lang 26 German MoD Federal Republic of Germany1972 No 31 FW Flt Lt John Fawcett 27 RAF United Kingdom1973 DH Jackson RAF United Kingdom1974 Maj GE Luca Evangelisti Italian Air Force Italy1975 GA Ellis RAF United Kingdom1976 MC Hagen Royal Navy United Kingdom1977 n a Flt Lt Ronald Cowpe 29 RAF United Kingdom1978 n a Capt Patrick Baudry 30 French Air Force France1979 AR Foster RAF United Kingdom1980 n a F O John Blackburn 31 RAAF Australia1981 No 40 FW Sqn Ldr Jean Pierre Haignere French Air Force France1982 No 41 FW n a Michel Tognini 43 French Air Force France1983 B Van Eyle RAAF Australia1984 1987 46 FW Flt Lt Henry de Courcier RAF United Kingdom1997 No 35 RW Lt Cdr Mark Carretta RN United KingdomLt Cdr Roger Moffatt RN United Kingdom1998 n a n a Antoine Van Gent citation needed RNLAF Netherlands1999 No 37 RW n a Simon Sparkes 16 Royal Navy United Kingdom1999 n a n a n a Netherlands2002 No 40 RW n a Stephen Crockatt Royal Navy United Kingdom2005 No 43 RW CC B Hede Hauy French Navy France2007 No 45 RW CC M Barreault French Navy France2008 No 46 RW Maj Frederic Hauviller French Army Aviation FranceWestland Trophy Edit The Westland Trophy originally presented by Westland Aircraft Limited in 1963 is awarded to the best all round student on the Rotary Wing Course To expand the collapsed table click on show in the Year column header to collapse again click on hide Winners of the Westland Trophy Year Course Rank style Name Decorations Employer Country1963 No 1 RW Flt Lt MC Ginn RAF United Kingdom1964 No 2 RW Lt M Hope RN United Kingdom1965 No 3 RW Lt Cdr LG Locke RN United Kingdom1966 No 4 RW Flt Lt JH Cox RAAF Australia1967 No 5 RW Flt Lt LVP Galvin RCAF Canada1968 No 6 RW MFL Purse RN United Kingdom1969 No 7 RW WLM Mayer RAF United Kingdom1970 No 8 RW Flt Lt David F Moffat RAF United Kingdom1971 No 9 RW Flt Lt John Whitney 26 RAF United Kingdom1972 No 10 RW Flt Lt Stuart Collins 27 RAF United Kingdom1973 No 11 RW KB Engelsmann RAN Australia1974 No 12 RW M Betts RAF United Kingdom1975 No 13 RW T Creed RAF United Kingdom1976 No 14 RW JH Allen RAF United Kingdom1977 No 15 RW Mr Trevor Ralston 30 South African DCA South Africa1978 No 16 RW Lt Cdr David Chapman 30 RN United Kingdom1979 No 17 RW A Noy Israeli AF Israel1980 No 18 RW Flt Lt JEM Ted Mustard 31 RAF United Kingdom1981 No 19 RW I Young RAF United Kingdom1982 No 20 RW Mr R Longobardi Italy1983 No 21 RW TJ Wood RAF United Kingdom1984 No 22 RW 1985 No 23 RW Lt Bob Horton 32 RN United Kingdom1986 No 24 RW Eric Fitzpatrick 44 Royal Marines United Kingdom1988 No 26 RW Capt Omri Knoller Israeli AF Israel1993 No 31 RW Flt Lt Pete Rowlinson RAF United Kingdom1997 No 35 RW Lt Cdr Roger Moffatt RN United Kingdom2001 No 39 RW Capt Massimo Bonesi 36 Italian Army Air Cavalry Italy2002 No 40 RW 2003 No 41 RW Jacob Bart citation needed Royal Netherlands Air Force Netherlands2004 No 42 RW 2005 No 43 RW Maj Timothy Peake British Army Air Corps United Kingdom2006 No 44 RW Lt Cdr Mark Purvis Royal Navy United Kingdom Sir Alan Cobham Award Edit Presented to ETPS in 1974 by Michael Cobham son of Sir Alan Cobham this trophy is awarded to the fixed wing student who demonstrates the highest standard of flying during the course The trophy is a silver model of a Short Singapore II flying boat which was originally awarded to Sir Alan and his wife in 1928 in commemoration of their epic circuit of Africa flight in 1927 in such a flying boat 45 To expand the collapsed table click on show in the Year column header to collapse the expanded table click on hide Winners of the Sir Alan Cobham Trophy Year Course Rank style Name Decorations Employer Country1974 Flt Lt John Thorpe RAF United Kingdom1975 No 34 FW Flt Lt Chris Yeo 46 RAF United Kingdom1976 MC Hagen Royal Navy United Kingdom1977 n a Capt Agostino Frediani 29 Italian Air Force Italy1978 n a Flt Lt Graham Tomlinson 30 RAF United Kingdom1979 TH Brown RAF United Kingdom1980 No 39 FW F O Tracey McCormick 31 RAAF Australia1981 JJ Barnett RAF United Kingdom1982 DAZ James RAF United Kingdom1983 PD Dye RAF United Kingdom1984 1985 No 44 FW Flt Lt Dave Southwood 32 RAF United Kingdom1986 1987 1988 No 47 FW Capt Maurizio Cheli 33 Italian Air Force Italy1995 No 54 FW Capt Bjorn Rygnestad RoNAF Norway2003 No 62 FW Flt Lt Dave Stobie RAF United Kingdom2004 No 63 FW Flt Lt Jim Schofield RAF United KingdomDunlop Trophy Edit The Dunlop Trophy initially awarded by the Dunlop Rubber company in 1974 is awarded to the best student on each Flight Test Engineers course To expand the collapsed table click on show in the Year column header to collapse the expanded table click on hide Winners of the Dunlop Trophy Year Course Rank style Name Decorations Employer Country1974 No 1 FTE Mr John LF Denning 45 United Kingdom1975 No 2 FTE RJ Humphries 1976 No 3 FTE JC Martin 1977 No 4 FTE Lt M Maharik 29 Israeli Air Force Israel1978 No 5 FTE Lt David Benedetti 30 Italian Air Force Italy1979 No 6 FTE AM Oliver 1980 No 7 FTE Mr Robert Badham 31 UK MoD United Kingdom1981 No 8 FTE A J Houghton 1982 No 9 FTE K Jones 1983 No 10 FTE B R Fouques1989 No 13 FTE Lt Piero Serra No 13 FTE Italian Air Force Italy1990 No 14 FTE Lt Vito Casagrande Italian Air Force Italy1993 No 17 FTE Mr B Dudgeon UK MoD United Kingdom1994 No 18 FTE Capt S McIntosh CAF Canada1995 No 19 FTE Capt D J Masters CAF Canada1998 No 22 FTE Antoine Van Gent citation needed RNLAF Netherlands2000 No 24 FTE Maj Francois Robert CAF Canada2001 No 25 FTE Gordon Stewart 36 QinetiQ United Kingdom2002 No 26 FTE Mr A M Roberts QinetiQ United Kingdom2003 No 27 FTE Maj Jeoh Leo 47 Singapore Air Force Singapore2004 No 28 FTE Capt Anne Ducarouge French Forces France 2008 No 32 FTE Lt Alrik Hoencamp 48 RNN Netherlands2009 No 33 FTE Dr Clare Chatterjea QinetiQ United Kingdom2010 No 34 FTE Miss Gemma Dore QinetiQ United Kingdom2011 No 35 FTE Capt M Desrochers RCAF Canada2012 No 36 FTE Capt I Leong RAEME Australia2013 No 37 FTE ME4 K H Tee RSAF Singapore2014 No 38 FTE Lt P Six French Navy FranceSee also EditList of test pilot schools Rotary Wing Test Squadron Boscombe DownReferences EditNotes Edit On 19 January 1945 flying a North American Mustang IV when an ammunition box cover detached at high speed causing structural failure of a wing The aircraft crashed on the perimeter of Old Sarum airfield Sqn Ldr Whittome died in a flying accident in a Spitfire in 1948 22 Flt Lt Hough died in a flying accident in a Sycamore in 1953 23 Ross died in a flying accident in a Javelin in 1954 24 Capt Fryklund died in a flying accident in 1954 24 Capt Bignamini died in a flying accident 24 Died in an accident in an F 100 Super Sabre while on Reserve training with the Air National Guard in 1965 25 Died in a flying accident on 10 August 1976 39 A Shaked died in a flying accident in a Dornier Do 28 40 Citations Edit a b c Sturtivant 1997 p 112 Origins of Flight Test ETPS QinetiQ Archived from the original on 7 March 2010 Retrieved 3 April 2010 Sturtivant 1997 p 44 Johnson 1986 p 19 Johnson 1986 p 31 Johnson 1986 p 23 Johnson 1986 p 25 Johnson 1986 p 27 Johnson 1986 p 32 Field Hugh 8 March 1973 Learning to Test Flight International Flight global 103 3339 340 Retrieved 1 April 2010 Short Courses ETPS QinetiQ Archived from the original on 12 May 2010 Retrieved 13 April 2010 Johnson 1986 pp 39 40 Learning to Test Flight International Flight global 158 4757 41 4 December 2000 Retrieved 7 December 2010 a b ETPS 1968 Robinson 2007 p 280 a b CO ETPS Our training team QinetiQ 2010 Our Aircraft ETPS Retrieved 18 August 2019 Australian Chapter The Association of Old Crows 1940 45 Test Flying Memorial of British test pilots and engineers dead while test flying archived from the original on 2 August 2009 retrieved 26 February 2010 DR Cuming The Canberra Times biographical detail 17 April 2002 permanent dead link Test Pilots Dine Passing out Dinner and Presentation of McKenna Trophy at Cranfield Flight Magazine 95 LI 238 20 March 1947 Retrieved 20 December 2010 Rawlings amp Sedgwick 1991 p 126 Rawlings amp Sedgwick 1991 p 127 a b c Rawlings amp Sedgwick 1991 p 128 Rawlings amp Sedgwick 1991 p 130 a b c d e f Rawlings amp Sedgwick 1991 p 83 a b c d e f g ETPS The McKenna Dinner Flight Magazine 102 3329 917 28 December 1972 Retrieved 1 April 2010 Chief Test Pilot Thomas Morgenfeld AIAA Savannah 2010 Archived from the original on 16 June 2011 Retrieved 7 April 2010 a b c d e f g ETPS McKenna Dinner Flight International 113 3592 172 21 January 1978 Retrieved 13 April 2010 a b c d e f g h i Boscombe Down Pilots Award Flight International 114 3640 2239 22 December 1978 Retrieved 1 April 2010 a b c d e f g h The Empire Test Pilots School End of Course McKenna Dinner Flight International 119 3741 10 17 January 1981 Retrieved 7 April 2010 a b c d e f Johnson 1986 p 270 a b c NASA Astronauts with Texas Roots Texas Space Grant Consortium 1 August 2004 Retrieved 5 April 2010 Astronaut biography Frank de Winne European Space Agency 2010 Retrieved 5 April 2010 Royal Navy to celebrate centenary of naval aviation with flypast over HMS Illustrious in London Your Defence News Red Mist Media 1 May 2009 Retrieved 6 April 2010 permanent dead link a b c d Trophies The Daily Telegraph 14 December 2001 Top Stories Best Test Pilot Airforce News AU Defence Public Affairs and Corporate Communication Directorate of Internal Communications 45 3 13 March 2003 Retrieved 10 January 2011 Pilots The Yakovlevs air display team 2010 Retrieved 5 April 2010 permanent dead link Rawlings amp Sedgwick 1991 p 131 Rawlings amp Sedgwick 1991 p 133 sfn error no target CITEREFRawlingsSedgwick 1991 help Newsletter PDF The Hawker Association 2006 Retrieved 5 April 2010 Farley John 18 February 2007 Aviators Extraordinary PPRuNe Retrieved 5 April 2010 Astronaut biography Michel Tognini European Space Agency 21 November 2005 Retrieved 5 April 2010 Eric Fitzpatrick Empire Test Pilots School QinetiQ Archived from the original on 18 April 2011 Retrieved 20 December 2010 a b Rawlings amp Sedgwick 1991 p 90 Test amp Research Pilots Blogger Flight Test Engineers web log January 2008 Leo Jeoh 2007 Tech Edge Near Space Near Future Pointer Journal of the Singapore Armed Forces Government of Singapore 33 1 Retrieved 11 April 2010 Alle Hens Logboek Wie Wat Waar PDF in Dutch Royal Netherlands Navy 2009 p 35 retrieved 11 April 2010 permanent dead link Bibliography Edit The Empire Test Pilots School Twenty Five Years brochure 4 ed HMSO for The Empire Test Pilots School 1968 a href Template Citation html title Template Citation citation a format requires url help 68 pp Johnson Brian 1986 Test Pilot BBC Books p 287 ISBN 0 563 20502 4 Rawlings John Sedgwick Hilary 1991 Learn to Test Test to Learn The History of the Empire Test Pilots School Shrewsbury Airlife p 138 ISBN 1 85310 080 3 Robinson JA Robby 2007 Tester Zero One Old Forge Publishing ISBN 978 1 906183 00 4 Sturtivant Ray 1997 Royal Air Force Flying Training and Support Units Air Britain Historians ISBN 0 85130 252 1 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Empire Test Pilots School Official website ETPS Association UK QinetiQ Service biography of Air Marshal Sir Ralph S Sorley K C B O B E D S C D F C 1898 1974 RAF Web Aircraft amp Systems Testing Establishment Bharat rakshak The Indian Air Force s flight evaluation and test training school Bangalore Exchange of Test Pilots Proposed Flight Flight global 1948 Torch in the Sky Flight article Flight global 1949 on the purpose and practice of the ETPS Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Empire Test Pilots 27 School amp oldid 1130238157, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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