They are small in number but carry a large responsibility of piloting some of the most sophisticated aircraft the world has ever seen. And, they do it quite eloquently; maneuvering the world’s state-of-art fighter jets in desert skies, and always pushing the boundaries.
This is a story of five brave females – five flight test pilots and engineers – who recently graduated from the US Air Force Test Pilot School (TPS) at Edwards Air Force Base in California.
This is a record number of female test pilots TPS has ever produced in one go. Already dominating the skies, the small cadre of female pilots wonder why there are not more females doing it?
The fabulous five are Capts. Casey Horgan, Rachel Williams, Sarah Vorgert, Kalyn Tung, and civilian Raina Duncan. But they are identified by their call names when on duty, such as Hulk, Tumble, Booster, PsiPhi, and Shade, respectively.
All About Self-belief
Speaking about her journey to TPS, Horgan said she was never held back from doing anything during her upbringing, which made her trust her abilities.
There was never anything I was told I couldn’t or shouldn’t do. I grew up with great examples of female aviators, my mom included, and all of her friends, and there was no barrier there.
Who Are Test Pilots?
Being a flight test pilot is not an easy job. It requires Air Force’s some of the most sophisticated pilots, engineers, and combat system operators. They work collaboratively on the newest technologies required to improve the flying quality/performance of the aircraft.
Technical Director David Vanhoy told CNN that TPS graduates only a handful of test pilots every year, and usually, only less than 10 percent of them are females.
The average number of women per class is usually one to two.
However, this time, five females out of a class of 34 passed out – all with flying colors – which is a national record.
Meet Fabulous Five
Capt. Casey Horgan, (Hulk) – test pilot: Horgan, 31, flew C-130 Hercules transport aircraft at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida before joining TPS. She has an Air Force background with both of her parents being retired Air Force aviators. She knew she wanted to fly since she was a child.
Rachel Williams – test pilot: Rachel was 29 when she passed out of TPS. She has previously attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and flown C-17 Globemaster cargo aircraft in Texas. Having spent her childhood near Kennedy Space Center in Florida, she grew up watching shuttle rocket launches from her driveway. Her father was an Air Force pilot.
Capt. Sarah Vorgert [Booster] – flight test engineer: Sarah, 27, has served as a weapons tester at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida before attending TPS. A frequent attendee of air shows as a toddler, she is one of the youngest students to be accepted into the school.
Capt. Kalyn Tung, [Booster] flight test engineer: Age 30, she graduated from the US Air Force Academy and there for several years. She found airplanes cool and had a female teacher she looked up to who graduated from TPS, which made her want to pursue a career in flight test.
Raina Duncan [Shade] civilian flight test engineer: Age 35, she worked at Edwards Air Force Base for 11 years on the flight line and on T-7 jet trainers before she was accepted into TPS. The mother of a 2-year-old daughter, she attended her first air show when she was 3 years old.
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