NASA test pilot Nils Larson walks around an F-15B research aircraft for a rehearsal flight supporting the agency’s Quesst mission at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. The flight was part of a full-scale dress rehearsal for Phase 2 of the mission, which will eventually measure quiet sonic thumps generated by the X-59. The flight series helped NASA teams refine procedures and practice data collection ahead of future X-59 flights.

Former flight test instructor and current NASA test pilot Nils Larson reunited with former student and current astronaut Victor Glover on Oct. 21 during an open house at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.

Phillip Wellner from Life Support conducts a spirometry test on NASA Pilot Nils Larson before a Pilot Breathing Assessment flight at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in California. 

NASA test pilot Nils Larson gets an initial look at the painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. Larson, one of three test pilots training to fly the X-59 inspects aircraft’s delta wing; a requirement for quiet supersonic flight. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA test pilot Nils Larson gets an initial look at the painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. Larson, one of three test pilots training to fly the X-59 inspects the side of the 38-foot-long nose; a primary design feature to the X-59’s purpose of demonstrating the ability to fly supersonic, or faster than sound, without creating a loud sonic boom. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA test pilot Nils Larson gets an initial look at the painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. Larson, one of three test pilots training to fly the X-59 inspects the side of the 38-foot-long nose; a primary design feature to the X-59’s purpose of demonstrating the ability to fly supersonic, or faster than sound, without creating a loud sonic boom. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA pilot Ed Lewis (rear) briefs NASA test pilot Dick Ewers on the flight instruments of NASA's YO-3A acoustics research aircraft prior to a checkout flight.

NASA test pilot Jim Less prepares to exit the cockpit of the quiet supersonic X-59 aircraft in between electromagnetic interference (EMI) testing. The EMI testing ensures an aircraft’s systems function properly under various conditions of electromagnetic radiation. The X-59 is the centerpiece of the NASA’s Quesst mission, designed to demonstrate quiet supersonic technology and provide data to address a key barrier to commercial supersonic travel.

NASA test pilots Nils Larson (left) and Jim “Clue” Less (right) pose with the newly-painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA test pilot Nils Larson poses with the newly-painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA test pilot Jim “Clue” Less poses with the newly-painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA test pilot Jim “Clue” Less poses with the newly-painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA test pilot Nils Larson poses with the newly-painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA test pilot Nils Larson inspects the agency’s F-15D research aircraft at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, ahead of a calibration flight for a newly installed near-field shock-sensing probe. Mounted on the F-15D, the probe is designed to measure shock waves generated by the X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft during flight. The data will help researchers better understand how shock waves behave in close proximity to the aircraft, supporting NASA’s Quesst mission to enable quiet supersonic flight over land.

NASA test pilot Nils Larson inspects the agency’s F-15D research aircraft at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, ahead of a calibration flight for a newly installed near-field shock-sensing probe. Mounted on the F-15D, the probe is designed to measure shock waves generated by the X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft during flight. The data will help researchers better understand how shock waves behave in close proximity to the aircraft, supporting NASA’s Quesst mission to enable quiet supersonic flight over land.

Lunar landing test of LEM at LLRF Lunar Landing Research Facility: A NASA Langley research pilot flies a lunar lander in a test conducted in the Lunar Landing Research Facility.

NASA software developer, Ethan Williams, left, pilot Scott Howe, and operations test consultant Jan Scofield run a flight path management software simulation at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California in May 2023. This simulation research supports the integration of automated systems for the advanced air mobility mission.

NASA research pilot Gordon Fullerton checked out how the PCA software worked in the multi-engine simulator at NASA Ames before fight-testing PCA in an MD-11.

NASA pilot Nils Larson, and flight test engineer and pilot Wayne Ringelberg, head for a mission debrief after flying a NASA F/A-18 at Mach 1.38 to create sonic booms as part of the SonicBAT flight series at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in California, to study sonic boom signatures with and without the element of atmospheric turbulence.

Former NACA test pilots Scott Crossfield, Stan Butchart, Robert Champine, and John Griffith gathered at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center for the "Men of Mach 2" symposium, an event celebrating their work in the 1950's on the D-558-II Skyrocket aircraft.

NASA test pilot Nils Larson lowers the canopy of the X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft during ground tests at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California, on July 18, 2025. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission to demonstrate quiet supersonic flight and the aircraft is scheduled to make its first flight later this year.

A NASA F/A-18 is towed to the apron at NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California during sunrise over Rogers Dry Lake. The F/A-18 was used to test a transmitter for an air navigation system, called the Airborne Location Integrating Geospatial Navigation System, or ALIGNS. This system, designed to allow pilots to position their aircraft at precise distances to each other, will be critical for acoustic validation efforts of NASA's next supersonic X-plane, the X-59 Quiet SuperSonic Technology.

A TV reporter interviews NASA test pilot Bill Dana, wearing his infamous pink boots with yellow daisy decals, after the last powered flight of the X-24B.

NASA test pilot Bill Dana, resplendent in pink boots and pressure suit, was all smiles following the last powered flight of the X-24B on Sept. 23, 1975.

A team at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida tests small- and medium-sized bucket drums July 16, 2021, in the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab’s “big bin” during prototype development for the pilot excavator, a robotic mission designed for lunar operations. The bucket drum excavated lunar regolith simulant. The Swamp Works team leveled and compacted the simulant before excavation as well as measured penetration during the excavator testing. Robotics engineers Jason Schuler and Austin Langton worked inside the bin, teaming up with software engineer Kurt Leucht, who worked just outside of it.

A team at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida tests small- and medium-sized bucket drums July 16, 2021, in the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab’s “big bin” during prototype development for the pilot excavator, a robotic mission designed for lunar operations. The bucket drum excavated lunar regolith simulant. The Swamp Works team leveled and compacted the simulant before excavation as well as measured penetration during the excavator testing. Robotics engineers Jason Schuler and Austin Langton worked inside the bin, teaming up with software engineer Kurt Leucht, who worked just outside of it.

A team at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida tests small- and medium-sized bucket drums July 16, 2021, in the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab’s “big bin” during prototype development for the pilot excavator, a robotic mission designed for lunar operations. The bucket drum excavated lunar regolith simulant. The Swamp Works team leveled and compacted the simulant before excavation as well as measured penetration during the excavator testing. Robotics engineers Jason Schuler and Austin Langton worked inside the bin, teaming up with software engineer Kurt Leucht, who worked just outside of it.

A team at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida tests small- and medium-sized bucket drums July 16, 2021, in the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab’s “big bin” during prototype development for the pilot excavator, a robotic mission designed for lunar operations. The bucket drum excavated lunar regolith simulant. The Swamp Works team leveled and compacted the simulant before excavation as well as measured penetration during the excavator testing. Robotics engineers Jason Schuler and Austin Langton worked inside the bin, teaming up with software engineer Kurt Leucht, who worked just outside of it.

A team at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida tests small- and medium-sized bucket drums July 16, 2021, in the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab’s “big bin” during prototype development for the pilot excavator, a robotic mission designed for lunar operations. The bucket drum excavated lunar regolith simulant. The Swamp Works team leveled and compacted the simulant before excavation as well as measured penetration during the excavator testing. Robotics engineers Jason Schuler and Austin Langton worked inside the bin, teaming up with software engineer Kurt Leucht, who worked just outside of it.

A team at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida tests small- and medium-sized bucket drums July 16, 2021, in the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab’s “big bin” during prototype development for the pilot excavator, a robotic mission designed for lunar operations. The bucket drum excavated lunar regolith simulant. The Swamp Works team leveled and compacted the simulant before excavation as well as measured penetration during the excavator testing. Robotics engineers Jason Schuler and Austin Langton worked inside the bin, teaming up with software engineer Kurt Leucht, who worked just outside of it.

A team at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida tests small- and medium-sized bucket drums July 16, 2021, in the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab’s “big bin” during prototype development for the pilot excavator, a robotic mission designed for lunar operations. The bucket drum excavated lunar regolith simulant. The Swamp Works team leveled and compacted the simulant before excavation as well as measured penetration during the excavator testing. Robotics engineers Jason Schuler and Austin Langton worked inside the bin, teaming up with software engineer Kurt Leucht, who worked just outside of it.

A team at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida tests small- and medium-sized bucket drums July 16, 2021, in the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab’s “big bin” during prototype development for the pilot excavator, a robotic mission designed for lunar operations. The bucket drum excavated lunar regolith simulant. The Swamp Works team leveled and compacted the simulant before excavation as well as measured penetration during the excavator testing. Robotics engineers Jason Schuler and Austin Langton worked inside the bin, teaming up with software engineer Kurt Leucht, who worked just outside of it.

Air Force test pilot Maj. Michael J. Adams stands beside X-15 ship number one. Adams was selected for the X-15 program in 1966 and made his first flight on Oct. 6, 1966. On Nov. 15, 1967, Adams made his seventh and final X-15 flight. The X-15 launched from the B-52, but during the ascent an electrical problem affected the X-15's control system. The aircraft crashed northwest of Cuddeback Lake, California, causing the death of Adams. He was posthumously awarded Air Force astronaut wings because his final flight exceeded 50 miles in altitude. Adams was the only pilot lost in the 199-flight X-15 program.

Scaled Composites' Doug Shane examines the screen of his ground control station during tests in New Mexico. Shane used this configuration as the ground control station to remotely pilot the Proteus aircraft during a NASA sponsored series of tests.

Research pilots from the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., tested a prototype two-part helmet. Built by Gentex Corp., Carbondale, Pa., the helmet was evaluated by five NASA pilots during the summer and fall of 2002. The objective was to obtain data on helmet fit, comfort and functionality. The inner helmet of the modular system is fitted to the individual crewmember. The outer helmet features a fully integrated spectral mounted helmet display and a binocular helmet mounted display. The helmet will be adaptable to all flying platforms. The Dryden evaluation was overseen by the Center's Life Support office. Assessments have taken place during normal proficiency flights and some air-to-air combat maneuvering. Evaluation platforms included the F-18, B-52 and C-12. The prototype helmet is being developed by the Naval Air Science and Technology Office and the Aircrew Systems Program Office, Patuxent River, Md.

NASA panelists appear at special panel titled “The Next Bold Step: The Future of Space Flight and Aerospace,” on July 29, 2022, at EAA Airventure. Panelists include Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy, Astronaut Drew Feustel, Artemis Mission Manager Michael Sarafin, Research Pilot Liz Ruth and Test Pilot Nils Larson.

NASA panelists appear at special panel titled “The Next Bold Step: The Future of Space Flight and Aerospace,” on July 29, 2022, at EAA Airventure. Panelists include Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy, Astronaut Drew Feustel, Artemis Mission Manager Michael Sarafin, Research Pilot Liz Ruth and Test Pilot Nils Larson.

NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft successfully completed its “aluminum bird” systems test at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California. With NASA pilot James Less in the cockpit, the X-59 team simulated flight conditions from takeoff to landing – without ever leaving the ground. The test verified how the aircraft’s hardware and software work together, responding to pilot inputs and handling injected system failures. This milestone confirms the aircraft’s readiness for the next series of tests leading to first flight.

NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft successfully completed its “aluminum bird” systems test at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California. With NASA pilot James Less in the cockpit, the X-59 team simulated flight conditions from takeoff to landing – without ever leaving the ground. The test verified how the aircraft’s hardware and software work together, responding to pilot inputs and handling injected system failures. This milestone confirms the aircraft’s readiness for the next series of tests leading to first flight.

jsc2026e002965 (Jan. 12, 2026) --- NASA astronaut and SpaceX Crew-12 Pilot Jack Hathaway is photographed in his pressure suit during the Crew Equipment Interface Test at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The goal of the training is to rehearse launch day activities and get a close look at the Dragon spacecraft. Credit: SpaceX

Long-time NASA Dryden research pilot and former astronaut C. Gordon Fullerton capped an almost 50-year flying career, including more than 38 years with NASA, with a final flight in a NASA F/A-18 on Dec. 21, 2007. Fullerton and Dryden research pilot Jim Smolka flew a 90-minute pilot proficiency formation aerobatics flight with another Dryden F/A-18 and a Dryden T-38 before concluding with two low-level formation flyovers of Dryden before landing. Fullerton was honored with a water-cannon spray arch provided by two fire trucks from the Edwards Air Force Base fire department as he taxied the F/A-18 up to the Dryden ramp, and was then greeted by his wife Marie and several hundred Dryden staff after his final flight. Fullerton began his flying career with the U.S. Air Force in 1958 after earning bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology. Initially trained as a fighter pilot, he later transitioned to multi-engine bombers and became a bomber operations test pilot after attending the Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. He then was assigned to the flight crew for the planned Air Force Manned Orbital Laboratory in 1966. Upon cancellation of that program, the Air Force assigned Fullerton to NASA's astronaut corps in 1969. He served on the support crews for the Apollo 14, 15, 16 and 17 lunar missions, and was later assigned to one of the two flight crews that piloted the space shuttle prototype Enterprise during the Approach and Landing Test program at Dryden. He then logged some 382 hours in space when he flew on two early space shuttle missions, STS-3 on Columbia in 1982 and STS-51F on Challenger in 1985. He joined the flight crew branch at NASA Dryden after leaving the astronaut corps in 1986. During his 21 years at Dryden, Fullerton was project pilot on a number of high-profile research efforts, including the Propulsion Controlled Aircraft, the high-speed landing tests of

Long-time NASA Dryden research pilot and former astronaut C. Gordon Fullerton capped an almost 50-year flying career, including more than 38 years with NASA, with a final flight in a NASA F/A-18 on Dec. 21, 2007. Fullerton and Dryden research pilot Jim Smolka flew a 90-minute pilot proficiency formation aerobatics flight with another Dryden F/A-18 and a Dryden T-38 before concluding with two low-level formation flyovers of Dryden before landing. Fullerton was honored with a water-cannon spray arch provided by two fire trucks from the Edwards Air Force Base fire department as he taxied the F/A-18 up to the Dryden ramp, and was then greeted by his wife Marie and several hundred Dryden staff after his final flight. Fullerton began his flying career with the U.S. Air Force in 1958 after earning bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology. Initially trained as a fighter pilot, he later transitioned to multi-engine bombers and became a bomber operations test pilot after attending the Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. He then was assigned to the flight crew for the planned Air Force Manned Orbital Laboratory in 1966. Upon cancellation of that program, the Air Force assigned Fullerton to NASA's astronaut corps in 1969. He served on the support crews for the Apollo 14, 15, 16 and 17 lunar missions, and was later assigned to one of the two flight crews that piloted the space shuttle prototype Enterprise during the Approach and Landing Test program at Dryden. He then logged some 382 hours in space when he flew on two early space shuttle missions, STS-3 on Columbia in 1982 and STS-51F on Challenger in 1985. He joined the flight crew branch at NASA Dryden after leaving the astronaut corps in 1986. During his 21 years at Dryden, Fullerton was project pilot on a number of high-profile research efforts, including the Propulsion Controlled Aircraft, the high-speed landing tests of

Long-time NASA Dryden research pilot and former astronaut C. Gordon Fullerton capped an almost 50-year flying career, including more than 38 years with NASA, with a final flight in a NASA F/A-18 on Dec. 21, 2007. Fullerton and Dryden research pilot Jim Smolka flew a 90-minute pilot proficiency formation aerobatics flight with another Dryden F/A-18 and a Dryden T-38 before concluding with two low-level formation flyovers of Dryden before landing. Fullerton was honored with a water-cannon spray arch provided by two fire trucks from the Edwards Air Force Base fire department as he taxied the F/A-18 up to the Dryden ramp, and was then greeted by his wife Marie and several hundred Dryden staff after his final flight. Fullerton began his flying career with the U.S. Air Force in 1958 after earning bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology. Initially trained as a fighter pilot, he later transitioned to multi-engine bombers and became a bomber operations test pilot after attending the Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. He then was assigned to the flight crew for the planned Air Force Manned Orbital Laboratory in 1966. Upon cancellation of that program, the Air Force assigned Fullerton to NASA's astronaut corps in 1969. He served on the support crews for the Apollo 14, 15, 16 and 17 lunar missions, and was later assigned to one of the two flight crews that piloted the space shuttle prototype Enterprise during the Approach and Landing Test program at Dryden. He then logged some 382 hours in space when he flew on two early space shuttle missions, STS-3 on Columbia in 1982 and STS-51F on Challenger in 1985. He joined the flight crew branch at NASA Dryden after leaving the astronaut corps in 1986. During his 21 years at Dryden, Fullerton was project pilot on a number of high-profile research efforts, including the Propulsion Controlled Aircraft, the high-speed landing tests of

Long-time NASA Dryden research pilot and former astronaut C. Gordon Fullerton capped an almost 50-year flying career, including more than 38 years with NASA, with a final flight in a NASA F/A-18 on Dec. 21, 2007. Fullerton and Dryden research pilot Jim Smolka flew a 90-minute pilot proficiency formation aerobatics flight with another Dryden F/A-18 and a Dryden T-38 before concluding with two low-level formation flyovers of Dryden before landing. Fullerton was honored with a water-cannon spray arch provided by two fire trucks from the Edwards Air Force Base fire department as he taxied the F/A-18 up to the Dryden ramp, and was then greeted by his wife Marie and several hundred Dryden staff after his final flight. Fullerton began his flying career with the U.S. Air Force in 1958 after earning bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology. Initially trained as a fighter pilot, he later transitioned to multi-engine bombers and became a bomber operations test pilot after attending the Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. He then was assigned to the flight crew for the planned Air Force Manned Orbital Laboratory in 1966. Upon cancellation of that program, the Air Force assigned Fullerton to NASA's astronaut corps in 1969. He served on the support crews for the Apollo 14, 15, 16 and 17 lunar missions, and was later assigned to one of the two flight crews that piloted the space shuttle prototype Enterprise during the Approach and Landing Test program at Dryden. He then logged some 382 hours in space when he flew on two early space shuttle missions, STS-3 on Columbia in 1982 and STS-51F on Challenger in 1985. He joined the flight crew branch at NASA Dryden after leaving the astronaut corps in 1986. During his 21 years at Dryden, Fullerton was project pilot on a number of high-profile research efforts, including the Propulsion Controlled Aircraft, the high-speed landing tests of sp

Long-time NASA Dryden research pilot and former astronaut C. Gordon Fullerton capped an almost 50-year flying career, including more than 38 years with NASA, with a final flight in a NASA F/A-18 on Dec. 21, 2007. Fullerton and Dryden research pilot Jim Smolka flew a 90-minute pilot proficiency formation aerobatics flight with another Dryden F/A-18 and a Dryden T-38 before concluding with two low-level formation flyovers of Dryden before landing. Fullerton was honored with a water-cannon spray arch provided by two fire trucks from the Edwards Air Force Base fire department as he taxied the F/A-18 up to the Dryden ramp, and was then greeted by his wife Marie and several hundred Dryden staff after his final flight. Fullerton began his flying career with the U.S. Air Force in 1958 after earning bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology. Initially trained as a fighter pilot, he later transitioned to multi-engine bombers and became a bomber operations test pilot after attending the Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. He then was assigned to the flight crew for the planned Air Force Manned Orbital Laboratory in 1966. Upon cancellation of that program, the Air Force assigned Fullerton to NASA's astronaut corps in 1969. He served on the support crews for the Apollo 14, 15, 16 and 17 lunar missions, and was later assigned to one of the two flight crews that piloted the space shuttle prototype Enterprise during the Approach and Landing Test program at Dryden. He then logged some 382 hours in space when he flew on two early space shuttle missions, STS-3 on Columbia in 1982 and STS-51F on Challenger in 1985. He joined the flight crew branch at NASA Dryden after leaving the astronaut corps in 1986. During his 21 years at Dryden, Fullerton was project pilot on a number of high-profile research efforts, including the Propulsion Controlled Aircraft, the high-speed landing tests of

Long-time NASA Dryden research pilot and former astronaut C. Gordon Fullerton capped an almost 50-year flying career, including more than 38 years with NASA, with a final flight in a NASA F/A-18 on Dec. 21, 2007. Fullerton and Dryden research pilot Jim Smolka flew a 90-minute pilot proficiency formation aerobatics flight with another Dryden F/A-18 and a Dryden T-38 before concluding with two low-level formation flyovers of Dryden before landing. Fullerton was honored with a water-cannon spray arch provided by two fire trucks from the Edwards Air Force Base fire department as he taxied the F/A-18 up to the Dryden ramp, and was then greeted by his wife Marie and several hundred Dryden staff after his final flight. Fullerton began his flying career with the U.S. Air Force in 1958 after earning bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology. Initially trained as a fighter pilot, he later transitioned to multi-engine bombers and became a bomber operations test pilot after attending the Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. He then was assigned to the flight crew for the planned Air Force Manned Orbital Laboratory in 1966. Upon cancellation of that program, the Air Force assigned Fullerton to NASA's astronaut corps in 1969. He served on the support crews for the Apollo 14, 15, 16 and 17 lunar missions, and was later assigned to one of the two flight crews that piloted the space shuttle prototype Enterprise during the Approach and Landing Test program at Dryden. He then logged some 382 hours in space when he flew on two early space shuttle missions, STS-3 on Columbia in 1982 and STS-51F on Challenger in 1985. He joined the flight crew branch at NASA Dryden after leaving the astronaut corps in 1986. During his 21 years at Dryden, Fullerton was project pilot on a number of high-profile research efforts, including the Propulsion Controlled Aircraft, the high-speed landing tests of

NASA test pilot Nils Larson steps out of the X-59 after successfully completing the aircraft’s first flight Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2025. The mission marked a key milestone in advancing NASA’s Quesst mission to enable quiet supersonic flight over land.

NASA astronaut and Boeing Crew Flight Test Pilot Suni Williams Suni Williams uses a HAM radio and talks to students from Banda Aceh, Indonesia, answering their questions about life in space and other space related subjects aboard the International Space Station.

NASA test pilot, Nils Larson, inspects the X-59 cockpit displays and lighting system during system checkouts. The External Vision System (XVS) is displayed on the top screen, and the avionics flight displays, which can show navigation information or aircraft status, are shown on the bottom two screens.

iss071e379502 (July 23, 2024) --- Clockwise from left, NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Mike Barratt, and Butch Wilmore work on lab maintenance tasks aboard the International Space Station. Williams and Wilmore are the Pilot and Commander, respectively, for Boeing's Crew Flight Test and Barratt is an Expedition 71 Flight Engineer.

jsc2024e052329 (July 22, 2024) --- NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Pilot Nick Hague smiles and gives two thumbs up during the crew equipment interface test (CEIT) at SpaceX’s new Dragon refurbishing facility at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This will be his second mission to the orbiting laboratory. Credit: SpaceX

NASA’s Ikhana remotely piloted aircraft (front-right) is situated near NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center’s Hangar 4802 after an Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration into the National Airspace System Flight Test Series 4 flight, along with five flight “intruders.” These intruders, which include NASA’s TG-14 (front-left), T-34C (front-center), B-200 King Air (back-left), Gulfstream-III (back-center) and a Honeywell C-90 King Air (back-right), fly within a pre-determined distance to Ikhana to test Detect-and-Avoid technology during research flights.

jsc2026e002974 (Jan. 12, 2026) --- NASA astronaut and SpaceX Crew-12 Pilot Jack Hathaway is photographed in his pressure suit and inside the Dragon spacecraft during the Crew Equipment Interface Test at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The goal of the training is to rehearse launch day activities and get a close look at the spacecraft that will take them to the International Space Station. Credit: SpaceX

iss071e403704 (July 24, 2024) --- NASA astronauts (from left) Tracy C. Dyson, Expedition 71 Flight Engineer, and Suni Williams, Pilot for Boeing's Crew Flight Test, work inside the NanoRacks Bishop airlock located in the port side of the International Space Station's Tranquility module. The duo installed the the ArgUS Mission-1 technology demonstration hardware inside Bishop for placement outside in the vacuum of space to test the external operations of communications, computer processing, and high-definition video gear.

Event: Forebody and Nose - Windtunnel Testing A technician works on the X-59 model during testing in the low-speed wind tunnel at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. These tests gave the team measurements of wind flow angle around the aircraft’s nose and confirmed computer predictions made using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software tools. The data will be fed into the aircraft flight control system to tell the pilot the aircraft’s altitude, speed, and angle. This is part of NASA’s Quesst mission which plans to help enable supersonic air travel over land.

NASA pilot Jim Less sits in the cockpit of a NASA F/A-18 aircraft in preparation for flight tests that will be used to understand the physiological impacts that high-performance aircraft have on pilots.

Lights illuminate NASA’s Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft at Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on 01/18/2026. In the coming days, engineers will prepare for the wet dress rehearsal, a two-day test that simulates launch day. The Artemis II test flight will take Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch from NASA, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen from the CSA (Canadian Space Agency), around the Moon and back to Earth no later than April 2026.

Lights illuminate NASA’s Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft at Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on 01/18/2026. In the coming days, engineers will prepare for the wet dress rehearsal, a two-day test that simulates launch day. The Artemis II test flight will take Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch from NASA, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen from the CSA (Canadian Space Agency), around the Moon and back to Earth no later than April 2026.

Lights illuminate NASA’s Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft at Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on 01/17/2026. In the coming days, engineers will prepare for the wet dress rehearsal, a two-day test that simulates launch day. The Artemis II test flight will take Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch from NASA, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen from the CSA (Canadian Space Agency), around the Moon and back to Earth no later than April 2026.

A side view shows the SLS (Space Launch System) Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter, Orion Stage Adapter, Orion spacecraft, and Launch Abort System of NASA’s Artemis II rocket at Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The Artemis II test flight will take Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch from NASA, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen from the CSA (Canadian Space Agency), around the Moon and back to Earth.

The four principal HL-10 pilots are seen here with the lifting body aircraft. They are, left to right; Air Force Major Jerauld R. Gentry, Air Force test pilot Peter Hoag, and NASA pilots John A. Manke and Bill Dana. All are wearing the pressure suits needed for flying above 50,000 feet.

NASA Administrator Bridenstine tests the X-57 "Maxwell" simulator at NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center. The simulator is designed to provide feedback to NASA test pilots based on the aircraft's unique design and distributed electric propulsion system.

NASA Administrator Bridenstine tests the X-57 "Maxwell" simulator at NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center. The simulator is designed to provide feedback to NASA test pilots based on the aircraft's unique design and distributed electric propulsion system.

Event: Forebody and Nose - Windtunnel Testing A model of the X-59 forebody is shown in the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works’ wind tunnel in Palmdale, California. These tests gave the team measurements of wind flow angle around the aircraft’s nose and confirmed computer predictions made using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software tools. The data will be fed into the aircraft flight control system to tell the pilot the aircraft’s altitude, speed and angle. This is part of NASA’s Quesst mission which plans to help enable supersonic air travel over land.

Event: Forebody and Nose - Windtunnel Testing A model of the X-59 forebody is shown in the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works’ wind tunnel in Palmdale, California. These tests gave the team measurements of wind flow angle around the aircraft’s nose and confirmed computer predictions made using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software tools. The data will be fed into the aircraft flight control system to tell the pilot the aircraft’s altitude, speed and angle. This is part of NASA’s Quesst mission which plans to help enable supersonic air travel over land.

NASA test pilot Wayne Ringelberg sits in the air taxi virtual reality flight simulator during a test at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California in March 2024.

Jerrie Cobb prepares to operate the Multi-Axis Space Test Inertia Facility (MASTIF) inside the Altitude Wind Tunnel at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Lewis Research Center. The MASTIF was a three-axis rig with a pilot’s chair mounted in the center to train Project Mercury pilots to bring a spinning spacecraft under control. An astronaut was secured in a foam couch in the center of the rig. The rig was then spun on three axes from 2 to 50 rotations per minute. The pilots were tested on each of the three axis individually, then all three simultaneously. The two controllers in Cobb’s hands activated the small nitrogen gas thrusters that were used to bring the MASTIF under control. A makeshift spacecraft control panel was set up in front of the trainee’s face. Cobb was one of several female pilots who underwent the skill and endurance testing that paralleled that of the Project Mercury astronauts. In 1961 Jerrie Cobb was the first female to pass all three phases of the Mercury Astronaut Program. NASA rules, however, stipulated that only military test pilots could become astronauts and there were no female military test pilots. The seven Mercury astronauts had taken their turns on the MASTIF in February and March 1960.

NASA astronaut Barry “Butch” Wilmore, Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) commander, checks his spacesuit during a crew validation test inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 18, 2022. Wilmore, along with NASA astronauts Suni Williams, CFT pilot, and Mike Fincke, CFT backup spacecraft test pilot, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

NASA astronaut Suni Williams, pilot for Boeing’s Crew Flight Test (CFT), checks her spacesuit during a crew validation test inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 18, 2022. Williams, along with NASA astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore, CFT commander, and Mike Fincke, CFT backup spacecraft test pilot, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

NASA astronaut Barry “Butch” Wilmore (right), Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) commander, and Mike Fincke, CFT backup spacecraft test pilot, check their spacesuits during a crew validation test inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 18, 2022. Wilmore and Fincke, along with NASA astronaut Suni Williams, CFT pilot, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

NASA astronaut Suni Williams, pilot for Boeing’s Crew Flight Test (CFT), checks her spacesuit and helmet during a crew validation test inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 18, 2022. Williams, along with NASA astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore, CFT commander, and Mike Fincke, CFT backup spacecraft test pilot, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, at right, backup spacecraft test pilot for Boeing’s Crew Flight Test (CFT), checks his spacesuit during a crew validation test inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 18, 2022. Fincke, with NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore, CFT pilot and commander, respectively, along with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) backup spacecraft test pilot, checks his spacesuit during a crew validation test inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 18, 2022. Fincke, along with NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore, CTF pilot and commander, respectively, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

NASA astronaut Suni Williams, pilot for Boeing’s Crew Flight Test (CFT), checks her spacesuit and helmet during a crew validation test inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 18, 2022. Williams, along with NASA astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore, CFT commander, and Mike Fincke, CFT backup spacecraft test pilot, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

NASA astronaut Barry “Butch” Wilmore, Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) commander, checks his helmet during a crew validation test inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 18, 2022. Wilmore, along with NASA astronauts Suni Williams, CFT pilot, and Mike Fincke, CFT backup spacecraft test pilot, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

NASA astronaut Barry “Butch” Wilmore, Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) commander, checks his spacesuit and helmet during a crew validation test inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 18, 2022. Wilmore, along with NASA astronauts Suni Williams, CFT pilot, and Mike Fincke, CFT backup spacecraft test pilot, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

From left, NASA astronauts Mike Fincke, Suni Williams, and Barry “Butch” Wilmore, Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) backup spacecraft test pilot, pilot, and commander, respectively, exit the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida during a crew validation test on Oct. 18, 2022. The astronauts, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

From left, NASA astronaut Suni Williams, Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) pilot, and Mike Fincke, CFT backup spacecraft test pilot, do a fist bump during a crew validation test inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 18, 2022. Williams and Fincke, along with Barry “Butch” Wilmore, CFT commander, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

From left, NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore, Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) pilot and commander, respectively, check their spacesuits during a crew validation test inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 18, 2022. Williams and Wilmore, along with Mike Fincke, CFT backup spacecraft test pilot, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations. Boeing’s CFT is scheduled to launch in April 2023.

jsc2026e002978 (Jan. 12, 2026) --- NASA astronauts (from left) Jack Hathaway and Jessica Meir, SpaceX Crew-12 Pilot and Commander respectively, are photographed in their pressure suits and inside the Dragon spacecraft during the Crew Equipment Interface Test at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The goal of the training is to rehearse launch day activities and get a close look at the spacecraft that will take them to the International Space Station. Credit: SpaceX

Kelly Latimer is a research pilot in the Flight Crew Branch of NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif. Latimer joined NASA in March 2007 and will fly the T38, T-34, G-III, C-17 and the "Ikhana" Predator B. Latimer is Dryden's first female research test pilot. Prior to joining NASA, Latimer was on active duty with the U.S. Air Force. She has accumulated more than 5,000 hours of military and civilian flight experience in 30 aircraft. Latimer's first association with NASA was while attending graduate school at George Washington University, Washington, D.C. Her studies included work with the Joint Institute for the Advancement of Flight Sciences at NASA's Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va. She flew an Air Force C-17 during a 2005 NASA study to reduce aircraft noise. A team of California Polytechnic State University students and Northrop Grumman personnel were stationed on Rogers Dry Lake located at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., to record the noise footprint of the aircraft as it made various landing approaches to Edwards' runway. Latimer completed undergraduate pilot training at Reese Air Force Base, Texas, in 1990. She remained at Reese as a T-38 instructor pilot until 1993. She was assigned as a C-141 aircraft commander at McCord Air Force Base, Tacoma, Wash., until 1996. Latimer graduated from the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards in Class 96B. She served as a C-17 and C-141 experimental test pilot at Edwards until 2000. She then became the chief of the Performance Branch and a T-38 instructor pilot at The Air Force Test Pilot School. She returned to McCord in 2002, where she was a C-17 aircraft commander and the operations officer for the 62nd Operations Support Squadron. In 2004, Latimer became the commander of Edwards' 418th Flight Test Squadron and director of the Global Reach Combined Test Force. Following that assignment, she deployed to Iraq as an advisor to the Iraqi Air Force. Her last active duty tour was as an instructor a

Four Naval helicopter pilots from Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 23 “Wildcards” pose for a photo in the Pacific Ocean as they prepare to participate in an Artemis II recovery test as part of NASA’s Underway Recovery Test 10. During recovery practice, these four pilots acted as Artemis II astronauts and were placed inside the Orion Crew Module Test Article, recovered from the capsule onto an inflatable “front porch” and then lifted via helicopter back to the flight deck of USS John P Murtha.

Frank Batteas is a research test pilot in the Flight Crew Branch of NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California. He is currently a project pilot for the F/A-18 and C-17 flight research projects. In addition, his flying duties include operation of the DC-8 Flying Laboratory in the Airborne Science program, and piloting the B-52B launch aircraft, the King Air, and the T-34C support aircraft. Batteas has accumulated more than 4,700 hours of military and civilian flight experience in more than 40 different aircraft types. Batteas came to NASA Dryden in April 1998, following a career in the U.S. Air Force. His last assignment was at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio, where Lieutenant Colonel Batteas led the B-2 Systems Test and Evaluation efforts for a two-year period. Batteas graduated from Class 88A of the Air Force Test Pilot School, Edwards Air Force Base, California, in December 1988. He served more than five years as a test pilot for the Air Force's newest airlifter, the C-17, involved in nearly every phase of testing from flutter and high angle-of-attack tests to airdrop and air refueling envelope expansion. In the process, he achieved several C-17 firsts including the first day and night aerial refuelings, the first flight over the North Pole, and a payload-to-altitude world aviation record. As a KC-135 test pilot, he also was involved in aerial refueling certification tests on a number of other Air Force aircraft. Batteas received his commission as a second lieutenant in the U. S. Air Force through the Reserve Officer Training Corps and served initially as an engineer working on the Peacekeeper and Minuteman missile programs at the Ballistic Missile Office, Norton Air Force Base, Calif. After attending pilot training at Williams Air Force Base, Phoenix, Ariz., he flew operational flights in the KC-135 tanker aircraft and then was assigned to research flying at the 4950th Test Wing, Wright-Patterson. He flew extensively modified C-135

Not every moment of a test pilot's day is serious business. In a moment of levity, NASA pilots Bill Dana (left) and John A. Manke try to drag Air Force test pilot Peter Hoag away from the HL-10 lifting body while Air Force Major Jerauld R. Gentry helps from the cockpit. These four men were the principal pilots for the HL-10 program. This was not the only prank involving the HL-10 and its pilots. Once "Captain Midnight" (Gentry) and the "Midnight Skulkers" sneaked into the NASA hangar and put "U.S. Air Force" on the aircraft using stick-on letters. Later, while Gentry was making a lifting-body flight, his 1954 Ford was "borrowed" from the parking lot, painted with yellow-green zinc-chromate primer, and decorated with large stick-on flowers about one foot in diameter. After Gentry returned from the flight, he was surprised to see what had happened to his car.

In preparation for flight tests of the X-59, NASA Armstrong research pilot Nils Larson goes through pressure breathing training in San Antonio, Texas.

The official crew portrait for NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test. Left is Suni Williams, who will serve as the pilot, and to the right is Barry “Butch” Wilmore, spacecraft commander.

S66-50772 (7 Sept. 1966) --- The Gemini-Titan XI (GT-11) prime and backup crews pose for a group portrait. Seated is the prime crew, astronauts Charles Conrad Jr. (right), command pilot, and Richard F. Gordon Jr. (left), pilot. The backup crew (standing) is astronauts Neil A. Armstrong (right), command pilot, and William A. Anders (left), pilot. The two crews were suited up for a simulation test at the Kennedy Space Center. Photo credit: NASA

Test pilot in cockpit.

NASA test pilots Nils Larson (left) and Jim “Clue” Less (right), and Lockheed Martin test pilot Dan “Dog” Canin pose with the newly-painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA test pilots Nils Larson (left) and Jim “Clue” Less (right), and Lockheed Martin test pilot Dan “Dog” Canin pose with the newly-painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA test pilots Nils Larson (left) and Jim “Clue” Less (right), and Lockheed Martin test pilot Dan “Dog” Canin pose with the newly-painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA test pilots Nils Larson (left) and Jim “Clue” Less (right), and Lockheed Martin test pilot Dan “Dog” Canin pose with the newly-painted X-59 as it sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.

NASA research pilot Jim Less wears a U.S. Navy harness configuration with the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California prototype mask, which uses laser sensors to determine levels of carbon dioxide and water exhaled inside the mask. This prototype was tested in conjunction with the current VigilOX system, which measures the pilot’s oxygen concentration, breathing pressures and flow rates. This and the U.S. Air Force configuration was used in the Pilot Breathing Assessment program at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in California.

NASA pilots along with Sikorsky safety pilots flying Sikorsky’s Black Hawk Optionally Piloted Vehicle, left, and SARA S-76B over Long Island Sound Thursday, Oct. 26, 2023. These flights will allow NASA researchers to test and evaluate multiple Advanced Air Mobility autonomous flight software products designed by NASA.

jsc2018e043361 (May 8, 2018) -- View taken of U.S. Navy Test Pilots School (USNTP) during WB-57 Flight Preparations and Takeoff/Landing operations. Photo of suited WB-57 pilots being integrated into aircraft. Photo Credit: NASA/Bill Stafford

S65-56177 (1965) --- Gemini-6 astronauts Walter M. Schirra Jr., command pilot, and Thomas P. Stafford, pilot, check out the spacecraft during a simulated test at Launch Complex 19 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Photo credit: NASA or National Aeronautics and Space Administration

S66-33406 (10 May 1966) --- Astronaut Thomas P. Stafford (on left), command pilot, and Eugene A. Cernan, pilot, in Gemini-9 spacecraft in the white room at Pad 19 during a Gemini-9/Agena simultaneous launch demonstration. This test is a coordinated dountdown of the Atlas-Agena and the Gemini-Titan vehicles. Photo credit: NASA

S66-32530 (14 April 1966) --- Astronauts John W. Young (right), command pilot, and Michael Collins, pilot, the prime crew of the Gemini-10 spaceflight, prepare for a Manned Altitude Test Run in the Gemini-10 spacecraft. They are in McDonnell Aircraft's 30-feet altitude chamber. Photo credit: NASA

Apollo 17 Mission commander, Eugene A. Cernan, in center is flanked by Command Module Pilot Ronald E. Evans and lunar Module Pilot Harrison H. Schmitt as they participate in emergency egress test on the mobile launcher at Complex 39A. They will be launched to the Moon December 6, 1972 on NASA's last manned lunar landing scheduled for this decade.

S66-34167 (21 April 1966) --- Astronauts John W. Young (right), command pilot, and Michael Collins, pilot, the prime crew of the Gemini-10 spaceflight, prepare for a Manned Altitude Test Run in the Gemini-10 spacecraft. They are in McDonnell Aircraft's 30-foot altitude chamber. Photo credit: NASA