Garmin Director of Flight Operations and Chief Test Pilot Tom Carr has received the prestigious Society of Experimental Test Pilots 2020 Iven C. Kincheloe Award for his “outstanding professional accomplishment in the conduct of flight testing.”
The award was established in 1958 in memory of the veteran flight test pilot and U.S. Air Force Korean war ace. It honors test pilots who have made “exceptional contributions to an aerospace program” and is the “most honorable recognition among the society,” according to Garmin officials.
Carr was honored with the award in recognition of his achievements as an experimental test pilot during the Garmin Autoland flight test program.
Autoland is designed to land an aircraft when the pilot can’t, according to company officials. In the event of an emergency, the Autoland system determines the most optimal airport and runway, taking into account factors such as weather, terrain, obstacles, and aircraft performance statistics.
Carr has flown Autoland development flights on the Columbia 400, Piper M600, and the Cirrus SF50 Vision Jet and flew as test pilot in hundreds of approaches and fully-automated landings. These tests were conducted as part of the FAA certification of Garmin Autoland, which was achieved on May 18, 2020. The system has since received FAA and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) certification on several additional aircraft types.
“From the day Tom started at Garmin, he has dedicated himself to growing our business and developing a team of passionate and talented flight test professionals and in doing so, he has built a world-class flight department,” said Phil Straub, executive vice president and managing director of aviation. “His dedication to the advancement of flight testing, along with his perseverance and pioneering vision, have played a vital role in bringing innovative Garmin products to market and into the hands of our customers, all of which further illustrates why he is extremely deserving of the Iven C. Kincheloe Award.”
Serving as director of flight operations and chief test pilot at Garmin for 17 years, Carr has more than 42 years of experience in experimental flight test. He holds an Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate with 14 type ratings and is rated for single-engine and multi-engine airplanes, seaplanes, and gliders. His flight experience spans 192 different aircraft types ranging from gliders to four-engine jets. Carr has more than 12,000 hours as Pilot-in-Command (PIC), including more than 5,000 hours conducting experimental flight tests.
At Garmin, Carr oversees flight operations in Olathe, Kansas, and Salem, Oregon, and has flown numerous avionics development and certification programs, including the G1000 and G5000 integrated flight decks, GFC 700 autopilot, Synthetic Vision Technology (SVT) and Garmin Electronic Stability and Protection (ESP).
Carr graduated from the University of Kansas with a B.S in Aerospace Engineering. He also has a M.S in Aviation Human Factors and a law degree. Prior to Garmin, Carr was a senior engineering test pilot at Beech Aircraft and Raytheon Aircraft in Wichita. At Raytheon, he flew research and development, as well as certification flight tests, specializing in aircraft stability and control, envelope expansion, high angle of attack and spin testing, finishing his career there as Hawker Horizon chief test pilot.