1997 Richard R. Hildebrand

RICHARD R. HILDEBRAND
Nomination for the Annual "Kelly" Johnson Award for
Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Flight Test Engineering

Mr. Hildebrand has been a member of the Society of Flight Test Engineers, Antelope Valley Chapter since 1969 and has served SFTE at both the national and local level for 28 years. Mr. Hildebrand helped establish the SFTE scholarship program to encourage and support students pursuing engineering, computer science, math, physics or other technical higher education. Mr. Hildebrand also served as SFTE Head Director from August 1975-1976.

Mr Hildebrand is currently the Executive Director for the Air Force Flight Test Center, AFFTC, Edwards Air Force Base, California. In this role, he serves as principal deputy to the Center Commander in formulating and executing policy for piloted and non-piloted aircraft testing, evaluation and development for the United States' premier flight test organization, the AFFTC.

Mr. Hildebrand began his career at Edwards in 1961 as a flight test engineer on the B-52H performance program. For the next 11 years he served in the Flight Test Engineering Directorate working on F-111, B-52, B-58 and EC-135 projects. In 1970 he was promoted into management supervising Performance and Flying Qualities engineers and in 1975 served as Deputy for Engineering for the Advanced Medium-Short Takeoff and Landing YC-14/YC-15 Combined Test Force. From 1977-1981 Mr. Hildebrand served as Deputy Director for the Air Launched Cruise Missile program. His next assignments were to lead the Airframe Systems and Engineering Management Support Branches. He founded the B-2 Combined Test Force and became the first B-2 Combined Test Force Director from 1983-1984. He assumed the senior executive position of Technical Director of the Test Group in 1984 and led that organization through its most challenging and productive years. More than 4,000 flight test hours supporting an unprecedented 532 test programs were successfully accomplished under his technical guidance in 1986. His leadership of the technical and safety review of these programs assured the most efficient completion of flight test programs without a single aircraft accident. In 1987 he assumed his present position.

Mr. Hildebrand is acknowledged internationally as a leader in flight test by the United States Air Force, the Department of Defense and America's NATO allies. He influenced the development of many of the aircraft which performed so superbly in the Desert Storm. In the drawdown since the Gulf War, he has served on numerous DoD level boards to study and implement tri-service (Air Force-Army-Navy) consolidation efforts. Mr. Hildebrand helped develop the concept of operations for the Test & Evaluation RELIANCE Investment Board CIERIB) which has been the lead organization consolidating, modernizing and improving the U.S. flight test infrastructure. His work has provided the basis for future flight test investments and helped to define test capabilities required by DoD into the next century. He also made significant technical contributions and has maintained excellent international relations as the U.S. representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's Advisory Group for Aerospace Research and Development (AGARD).

Mr. Hildebrand has received the Presidential Rank Award for Meritorious Civilian Service. He is an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and chaired the just completed National Workshop on Test Instrumentation for the International Test and Evaluation Association with over 250 participants.

Mr. Hildebrand has earned two Master's degrees and was a Stanford University Sloan Fellow.

Mr. Hildebrand has been a great credit to his profession, the Society of Flight Test Engineers and the U.S. Air Force. It is with great pride that the Antelope Valley Chapter recommends this outstanding flight test engineer for the prestigious "Kelly" Johnson Award.