14th ANNUAL FLIGHT TEST SYMPOSIUM
The Society, along with the RAAF Air Warfare Centre, hosted the 14th Australian Flight Test Symposium on 20 - 21 November 2024.
The event was an outstanding success with over 220+ registered attendees, a broad range of high-quality presentations, and fantastic engagement between Defence, Industry and Academia.
Please get in contact with any of the Board members via the website if you would like further information about any of the presentations.
A hearty congratulations to Mr Carl Godwin - representing Gilmore Space - who won the Shorty Award for the best technical presentation.
FLTLT Connor Wilson (ARDU), Mr Tristan Vanyai (UQ) and Mrs Jamie Smith (FTSA Secretary)
GPCAPT Randall McCutheon (Director T&E Directorate) presenting the Shorty Award to Mr Carl Godwin (Gilmore Space)
Flight Test Safety
The Flight Test Safety Committee (FTSC) was formed jointly in November 1994 by members of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots (SETP), the Society of Flight Test Engineers (SFTE) and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). These and numerous additional organisations presently comprise the FTSC. The FTSC aims to initiate and sustain a flight test-related safety organisation intended to promote flight safety, reduce the risk of mishaps, promote risk reduction management and continually improve the profession's communication and coordination.
Flight Test Safety Fact Newsletter - July 2024
The July 2024 Flight Test Safety Fact is now available for download.
Flight Test Safety Podcast Channel
RAeS Audio & Visual Archive
Thank you to our Historical Officer Bob Richardson for discovering the Royal Aeronautical Society's Audio and Visual Archive. These are mainly audio recordings of interviews with major players in aviation including many test pilots and engineers. Of particular interest are those of a very famous UK Aircraft Registration Board TP from 1949 to the 1980s, D.P. Davies who died in 2004. His spoken voice is superb, and his very forthright comments on civil aircraft handling qualities are quite riveting if you haven’t heard him before. He’s far more complimentary about the 707 and 747 family than about most British RPT aircraft, but his castigation of those responsible for the B727 stall certification in UK, US (and Australia) in the last 5 minutes of the second interview below is pretty powerful stuff.
- Testing the Comets, Boeing 707, Britannia & Brabazon
- Boeing 747, the Trident, VC10, One Eleven & the Boeing 727
Also of interest is Chuck Yeager, (now 96YO!). The last 20 minutes of Yeager’s interview talks about his NF104 rocket flights above 100,000ft, especially the great detail of his lost control and ejection are very good.