WHAT DOES A TEST PILOT DO?

by Robert Wells ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 10, 1969

Not the razzle-dazzle but the precise test pattern for youngsters with a grounding in aerodynamics. By flying a new aircraft to the limits of its design, a pilot determines ""What can a man do with this aircraft and what does this aircraft do the man?"" Involved are tests for each characteristic of performance or handling, described here as they are learned at the Navy or Air Force test pilot schools: the initial series of performance flight tests, the more difficult and dangerous series of Stability and Control Flight Tests. The culmination is ""qualitative"" test flying, i.e. judging the plane ""in the light of either its entire mission or some area of special interest."" Related is the test pilot's role as part of the design team from the start; added is his experience with such specialized craft as the VTOL and, following from Experimental Test Pilot training, in the Aerospace Research Pilot Phase as a potential astronaut. From the author of What Does a Jet Pilot. . . and What Does an Astronaut Do? (with an endorsement from the Past President of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots), a business-like briefing unlike any other.

Pub Date: Nov. 10, 1969

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Dodd, Mead

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1969

Categories: NONFICTION