Performance and Flying Qualities Professional Course

Test Pilot – Lead Flight Test Engineer

Duration

Approximately 26 weeks

Schedule & Cost

Refer to Professional Course Schedule & Cost Page

Course Description

The Performance and Flying Qualities Professional Course is a subset of the Test Pilot – Traditional Professional Course. This course is designed to equip experienced pilots with the knowledge and practical experience to safely plan, conduct and report on flight test programs with an emphasis on performance and handling qualities flight tests. This is not a basic flight training course, but an intense academic curriculum designed to produce world-class flight test personnel. The content of the course is in compliance with EASA regulations AMC1 FCL.820 Flight test rating and EASA Part 21 Lead Flight Test Engineers. NTPS is EASA Approved Organization (EASA.ATO.0027).
Graduates of this 26 weeks course are prepared to perform EASA Category 2 Flight Test privileges as per EASA Part 21.
Two versions are available: Fixed-Wing or Rotary Wing. The course is structured in one phase: the Performance and Flying Qualities Phase All students start with a three-week module of general topics and then start P&FQ. Course subjects are taught in modular form, generally one week of academics followed by 1-3 weeks of flight demonstrations, test planning, data collection and analysis, and reporting. Each student will:

receive over 300 hours of ground training, which include (but are not limited to) lectures, laboratories, exercises, simulations, and examinations;
receive approximately 80 hours of flight test training in more than 10 different aircraft, including aircrafts certificated in accordance with CS-25/CS-29 standards or equivalent airworthiness codes and in variable stability aircraft.

The modules are listed below:

Fixed Wing	Rotary Wing
T&E 4001 Fundamentals of Flight Test	T&E 4001 Fundamentals of Flight Test
T&E 4002 Test Management and OT&E	T&E 4002 Test Management and OT&E
T&E 4003 Capstone Project	T&E 4003 Capstone Project
T&E 4101 FW Performance Flight Testing I	T&E 4111 RW Performance Flight Testing I
T&E 4102 FW Performance Flight Testing II	T&E 4112 RW Performance Flight Testing II
T&E 4103 FW Flying Qualities Flight Testing I	T&E 4113 RW Flying Qualities Flight Testing I
T&E 4104 FW Flying Qualities Flight Testing II	T&E 4114 RW Flying Qualities Flight Testing II
T&E 4105 Modern Flight Control Systems	T&E 4105 Modern Flight Control Systems
T&E 4106 Loads, Flutter and Stores Testing	T&E 4116 Loads and Vibrations Testing
T&E 4107 Civil Aircraft Icing Certification	T&E 4107 Civil Aircraft Icing Certification

Master’s Degree Program

Students who complete the Performance and Flying Qualities Professional Course will have completed some of the required modules (40 out the 48 credits required) for the Master of Science Program and can graduate with one of the two master’s degrees in the Fixed Wing Professional or Rotary Wing Professional Track upon completion of remaining credits.
The National Test Pilot School is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) and approved by the State of California’s Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (BPPE). The Master of Science in Flight Test Engineering program is also accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org, under the General Criteria.

Prerequisites

A minimum of 750 hours of pilot-in-command time (pilots only)
A bachelor’s degree in math, science, or engineering (or equivalent military academy)
Medically qualified to perform flight duties.
Non-native English speakers must pass a Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) with a minimum score of 70.