With the increasing push for a military space force, Department of Defense officials are expanding the Air Force envelope to include space education with an emphasis on military application. In a recent memo, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld wrote that all military departments must pledge space education at every level. This will ensure space-qualified professionals have a direct understanding of space activities and how space capabilities are integrated into military operations.

Officials at the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School answered this call by creating the first aerospace vehicle test course. The school, which already has in-house expertise on "air-breathing" aircraft testing, tackled an earlier U.S. Space Command request for a space test program designed to teach testing of the Air Force's first-generation, aerospace vehicles, said Maj. Kelly Greene, the school's AVTC director.

"About five years ago, Space Command (officials) approached us and said TPS grads were not meeting space needs because training focused solely on airplane testing," said Greene. "They wanted us to create a short course focused on spaceplane testing."

Kevin Ford (pictured below), a former school staff member and now a NASA astronaut, put together the aerospace vehicle test course that started in May 2000. Since then, the course is held about once every 18 months, with the last class graduating in November 2001. The next course is June 2 through June 28.

The course consists of approximately 80 hours of academics, supplemented with projects, simulations, field trips and flying. From the history of aerospace planes to the launch and return of the space shuttle, the course covers a wide spectrum of aerospace disciplines.

"We currently have two hours of spacecraft re-entry and one hour on thermal protection systems," Greene said, "but due to the recent space shuttle disaster, we are adding another hour to discuss lessons learned from Columbia's destruction. We are always trying to keep the course as updated as possible."

In addition, the course offers students the unique opportunity to apply everything they learn in the classroom. "The students receive a T-38 (Talon) and an F-16 (Fighting Falcon) ride, two glider rides and a 'Vomit Comet' (pictured above) ride (where students experience zero gravity)," said Greene.

The course includes field trips to the Palmdale Production Facilities in Palmdale, Calif., the rocket labs and rocket launch vehicle operations and test complex here, the Vandenberg Spaceport at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., and the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

"When we visit the Johnson Space Center, every student gets a ride in the full-motion space shuttle simulator; they experience a simulated launch from Kennedy Space Center (Cape Canaveral, Fla.), an emergency over the Atlantic Ocean and a landing back at Kennedy," said Greene. "We haven't had a student miss the runway yet."

After four weeks of instruction, the aerospace test course concludes with a graduation exercise.
According to Greene, the students must design a test program on an aerospace vehicle -- create a test matrix and plan, fly the mission in one of NASA Dryden's simulators, collect data, compile the data and present their final test report on graduation day. "The course is fast paced, but well worth the effort," said Capt. Timothy Jorris, 452nd Flight Test Squadron lead Global Hawk operations engineer. He is a graduate of the first AVTC class and course instructor.

Jorris said the course is extremely beneficial because it links air and space academics, as well as demonstrates both disciplines through hands-on flight test. "The transition from air to space is happening rapidly, and those who attend this course can contribute and fill the gap in the safe atmospheric and space test of our future systems," said Maj. Bob Jones, NASA X-37 Orbital Vehicle project manager and the only Air Force Reserve AVTC graduate.

All students must have a bachelor of science or master of science degree in aeronautical, aerospace or astronautical engineering, or have a strong background in one of these fields, said Greene. Students must also be medically qualified to fly by passing a Class-III physical. [ANN Thanks Capt. Catie Hague, Air Force Flight Test Center Public Affairs]

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