Rigel Hebmann - Test Pilot Instructor

Rigel Hebmann - Test Pilot Instructor

Virgin Galactic test pilot, Jameel Janjua, walks the surface of Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards Air Force Base, the location where 54 space Shuttle missions safely landed.

Virgin Galactic test pilot, Jameel Janjua, walks the surface of Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards Air Force Base, the location where 54 space Shuttle missions safely landed.

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Test pilot Jameel Janjua in the centrifuge where pilots undergo the rigors of high g-force under a controlled environment. This photograph was taken at the maximum g-force a human body can withstand, 9.0.g. This force on a human body is extremely fat

Test pilot Jameel Janjua in the centrifuge where pilots undergo the rigors of high g-force under a controlled environment. This photograph was taken at the maximum g-force a human body can withstand, 9.0.g. This force on a human body is extremely fatiguing as a 200-pound pilot would weigh 1,800 pounds with this amount of g-force upon it.

The F-16 is a highly maneuverable air-to-air combat fighter that creates 29,000 pounds of thrust at takeoff and is capable of reaching Mach 2 (1500 mph) at cruise altitude.

The F-16 is a highly maneuverable air-to-air combat fighter that creates 29,000 pounds of thrust at takeoff and is capable of reaching Mach 2 (1500 mph) at cruise altitude.

Steve "Hooter" Rainey walks in the shadow of the "Skunk Works" Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk (s/n 79-10783) stealth ground-attack aircraft.

Steve "Hooter" Rainey walks in the shadow of the "Skunk Works" Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk (s/n 79-10783) stealth ground-attack aircraft.

Australian Army Test Pilot, Jake Merry, executing a preflight checklist in the cockpit of an Airbus EC-145 helicopter.

Australian Army Test Pilot, Jake Merry, executing a preflight checklist in the cockpit of an Airbus EC-145 helicopter.

The next generation of test pilots and flight test engineers at Edwards Air Force Base

The next generation of test pilots and flight test engineers at Edwards Air Force Base

Captain Heather "Tweek" Haphey-CSO, a combat systems operator, monitors the test record data and provides safety oversight during flights in the Lockheed Martin F-16D.

Captain Heather "Tweek" Haphey-CSO, a combat systems operator, monitors the test record data and provides safety oversight during flights in the Lockheed Martin F-16D.

A thermography image of exhaust heat signature exiting the nozzle of a Lockheed Martin F-16D.

A thermography image of exhaust heat signature exiting the nozzle of a Lockheed Martin F-16D.

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Test Pilots - Unteathered, Outside the Envelope

The movie Maverick, the highest-grossing film of 2022, illustrates how the world of test pilots has, once again, captured the excitement and imagination that is science at its zenith.

 In conjunction with Edwards Air Force Base and The Test Pilot Museum & Learning Center, this collection of imagery is a rare look into the evolutionary triumphs of aircraft design and the ever-evolving relationship between pilot and technology as we enter the next space age.

As creative director of the new museum build, I am honored to be part of the development of this interactive center which will serve as an opportunity for all to explore past missions as well as the innovations and expansions in production for our future and perhaps envision themselves one day becoming the heroes in the progression of space technology.

Test pilots who put their lives on the line with faith in the untested machine to launch into the unknown are fathers, mothers, sons and daughters, family, and friends who were inspired to reach out to embrace the possibilities of what could be, pushing these exotic machines to the threshold of failure.

Explore

The Shadow Dance of Sovereignty

Series of 18

Echos of Form

Series of 14

The Quiet Professionals

Series of 12

The Cowboy

Series of 25

Portraits

Series of 113