MANASSAS, VIRGINIA — Piston2Jet, a veteran-owned flight school based at Manassas Regional Airport (KHEF), recently released a new flight training program: The General Aviation Test Pilot Course.
The FAA Part 141 approved flight training program is designed to teach pilots the basics of test pilot academics and how to design and conduct flight tests, according to company officials.
“The course is perfect for any pilot seeking knowledge of aircraft test techniques, pursuing additional qualifications, or interested in flight test or aerospace research sectors of the aviation industry,” officials said in a prepared release.
The Test Pilot Course instructs pilots in a variety of aviation skills and subjects, including:
- Quantitative and qualitative techniques for performance evaluation, as well as longitudinal and lateral directional stability
- Test pilot responsibilities, the test planning process, and its risk assessment checklist, and the importance of test team interaction
- In-depth knowledge of performance calculations of light general aviation aircraft per the aircraft Pilot Operating Handbook (POH)
Piston2Jet’s Safety Director, retired USMC Colonel Doug “Smash” Yurovich, PhD, is the man behind the development of the course and also its chief instructor. A graduate of the United States Naval Test Pilot School at NAS Patuxent River, he is also a TOPGUN graduate, Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI), a Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet Squadron Commander, and the first-ever Marine Carrier Air Wing Commander.
He has logged over 5,000 hours of flight time in more than 60 aircraft types and has more than 500 aircraft carrier landings.
Cost of the course is $9,950.