Test Pilot

Download or read book Tex Johnston written by A. M. "Tex" Johnston and published by Smithsonian Institution. This book was released on 2014-12-02 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of America's most daring and accomplished test pilots, Tex Johnston flew the first US jet airplanes and, in a career spanning the 1930s through the 1970s, helped create the jet age at such pioneering aersospace companies as Bell Aircraft and Boeing.

Download or read book Speed written by Gilliland|Keith Dunnavant Bob Gilliland (Dunnavant) and published by U of Nebraska Press. This book was released on 2021-06 with total page 293 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On December 22, 1964, at a small, closely guarded airstrip in the desert town of Palmdale, California, Lockheed test pilot Bob Gilliland stepped into a strange-looking aircraft and roared into aviation history. Developed at the super-secret Skunk Works, the SR-71 Blackbird was a technological marvel. In fact, more than a half century later, the Mach 3-plus titanium wonder, designed by Clarence L. "Kelly" Johnson, remains the world's fastest jet. It took a test pilot with the right combination of intelligence, skill, and nerve to make the first flight of the SR-71, and the thirty-eight-year-old Gilliland had spent much of his life pushing the edge. In Speed one of America's greatest test pilots collaborates with acclaimed journalist Keith Dunnavant to tell his remarkable story: How he was pushed to excel by his demanding father. How a lucky envelope at the U.S. Naval Academy altered the trajectory of his life. How he talked his way into U.S. Air Force fighters at the dawn of the jet age, despite being told he was too tall. How he made the conscious decision to trade the security of the business world for the dangerous life of an experimental test pilot, including time at the clandestine base Area 51, working on the Central Intelligence Agency's Oxcart program. The narrative focuses most intently on Gilliland's years as the chief test pilot of the SR-71, as he played a leading role in the development of the entire fleet of spy planes while surviving several emergencies that very nearly ended in disaster. Waging the Cold War at 85,000 feet, the SR-71 became an unrivaled intelligence-gathering asset for the U.S. Air Force, invulnerable to enemy defenses for a quarter century. Gilliland's work with the SR-71 defined him, especially after the Cold War, when many of the secrets began to be revealed and the plane emerged from the shadows--not just as a tangible museum artifact but as an icon that burrowed deep into the national consciousness. Like the Blackbird itself, Speed is a story animated by the power of ambition and risk-taking during the heady days of the American Century.

Download or read book Luftwaffe Test Pilot written by Hans-Werner Lerche and published by . This book was released on 1980 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Afprøvning af erobrede flytyper (Beuteflugzeugen) i det tidligere Luftwaffen-Testzentrum, Rechlin, under 2. verdenskrig. Forfatteren virkede endvidere som testpilot på mange af Tysklands egne nyudviklede fly. Fløj ialt 125 forskellige flytyper.

Download or read book Higher and Faster written by Robert M. White and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2014-01-10 with total page 297 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1961, pilot Robert M. White flew a hypersonic rocket-powered airplane six times faster than the speed of sound and higher than 300,000 feet above the Earth's surface. This is his story. Tracing his childhood on the rough streets of Manhattan during the Depression, his years as a pilot and POW during World War II, his service in Korea and Vietnam and his rise as an experimental test pilot in the Air Force, this autobiography is a testament to the role of persistence and excellence in the life of a man whose aeronautical feats are now legend. It is the portrait of an extraordinary man in pursuit of the American dream and a glimpse into a remarkable time in America's aviation history.

Download or read book Stanley H. Kaplan, Test Pilot written by Stanley Henry Kaplan and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page 184 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Stanley H. Kaplan's uniquely effective teaching methods and his curiosity about a mysterious new test caused his tutoring business to grow at breathtaking speed from a modest Brooklyn operation into a global enterprise.

Download or read book Test Pilot written by Brian Johnson and published by Random House. This book was released on 2011-06-20 with total page 204 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Test pilots - dashing and courageous young men or foolhardy gamblers? In this fully illustrated book written by the producer of the BBC1 television series of the same name, we follow the ups and downs of a group of trainee test pilots at Boscombe Down in Wiltshire. Beginning with the exacting selection procedure, we discover what personal and professional qualities a pilot needs in order to become a test pilot. Only six UK and twelve foreign students are chosen each year and, once selected, the pressure on them steadily mounts. As the students learn to push each aircraft's performance to its limits they, too, are being mentally and physically stretched further than ever before. Training is given on both fixed - and rotary - wing aircraft and by the end of the course each student is fully conversant with the different techniques necessary to fly each type. They learn how to recover safely from spins, how to cope with sudden failures of equipment in mid-flight and how to land an aircraft with no power. All the time, they are assessing each aircraft's capabilities and the scope of the on-board technology. The final part of the course is the 'preview exercise' when every student is required to evaluate an aircraft he has never flown before and to make a formal presentation to his tutors and examiners. Using a number of remarkably frank interviews with students and tutors, Brian Johnson explores the process of becoming a test pilot and reveals both the stresses and successes of the year. The RAF has given its full support to both the book and the television programmes and thus has enabled Brian Johnson to produce a unique and authoritative account of the training for one of the most responsible and exciting jobs in modern aviation.

Download or read book Test Pilot written by Barry J. Schiff and published by Aviation Supplies & Academics. This book was released on 2001 with total page 388 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Organized into eight chapters, the book presents fun facts on the following subjects: History, Piloting, Navigation, Weather, Aircraft, Airlines and Military, Facts of Flight, Procedures and Regulations. Through multiple choice, true/false, fill-in-the-blank, mix-and-match, and essay questions, the reader is challenged to derive the answer before finding it at the end of the chapter. A true aviation buff, the author teaches new information, clarifies points commonly misunderstood, and provides a wealth of knowledge on the aviation industry. Illustrated throughout with unique and entertaining photographs from Barry Schiff's own collection. Pilots are accustomed to test-taking -- it's part of earning and maintaining all pilot certificates. But this collection of infrequently-asked questions puts the fun back into self-quizzing, encouraging you to stretch your knowledge base and go beyond the subjects learned during student pilot days. Some of Schiff's questions are for pure entertainment. Some take you right to the airport: "Q: A pilot is taxiing along a narrow taxiway at an uncontrolled airport on a cloudless day when he notices another 172 approaching from the opposite direction. Without stopping, how can both pilots be certain that their wingtips will not touch as they pass one another?" Some questions share tips from a pro; other material will spark lively discussions for hangar flying.