Albert G Boyd (November 22, 1906 – September 18, 1976) was a pioneering

test pilot A test pilot is an aircraft pilot with additional training to fly and evaluate experimental, newly produced and modified aircraft with specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques.Stinton, Darrol. ''Flying Qualities and Flight Testin ...

for the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Si ...

(USAF). During his 30-year career, he logged more than 23,000 hours of flight time in 723 military aircraft (though this number of the total number flown includes variants and sub variants of some types, and is not 723 distinct types). When he retired in 1957, he had flown every aircraft type operated by the USAF, including attack, cargo, trainer, fighter, experimental, bomber, mission trainer, liaison, observation, and general aviation planes and helicopters. From 1947 to 1957, Boyd flew and approved every aircraft type acquired by the USAF. When he retired, he was praised as the "Father of Modern Flight Testing," "World's Number One Test Pilot," "Dean of American Test Pilots" and "Father of USAF Test Pilots." His assignments included: * Chief of Flight Section at

Wright-Patterson AFB Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB) is a United States Air Force base and census-designated place just east of Dayton, Ohio, in Greene and Montgomery counties. It includes both Wright and Patterson Fields, which were originally Wilbur W ...

* Commander of Experimental Test Pilot School * First commander of USAF Flight Test Center at

Edwards Air Force Base Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force installation in California. Most of the base sits in Kern County, but its eastern end is in San Bernardino County and a southern arm is in Los Angeles County. The hub of the base is ...

* Commander of Wright Air Development Center (Maj.

Chuck Yeager Brigadier General Charles Elwood Yeager ( , February 13, 1923December 7, 2020) was a United States Air Force officer, flying ace, and record-setting test pilot who in October 1947 became the first pilot in history confirmed to have exceeded the ...

, a test pilot in his command, was the first American pilot to test the

MiG-15 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 (russian: Микоя́н и Гуре́вич МиГ-15; USAF/DoD designation: Type 14; NATO reporting name: Fagot) is a jet fighter aircraft developed by Mikoyan-Gurevich for the Soviet Union. The MiG-15 was one of ...

, associated with Operation Moolah.) * Deputy commander of Weapons System Headquarters,

Air Research and Development Command The Air Force Systems Command (AFSC) is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command. It was established in April 1951, being split off from Air Materiel Command. The mission of AFSC was Research and Development for new weapons systems. Ove ...

* Commanding general of Edwards AFB The prototype

Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star The Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star was the first jet fighter used operationally by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) during World War II. Designed and built by Lockheed in 1943 and delivered just 143 days from the start of design, prod ...

, modified as a racer and designated P-80R,"P-80 Shooting Star/44-85200."
''National Museum of the USAF.'' Retrieved: 9 October 2012. was piloted by Colonel Boyd to 623.73 mph (1,004.2 km/h) on 19 June 1947. This was recognised as an official air speed record, although this speed had already been exceeded by the Me 163 and

Me 262 The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed ''Schwalbe'' (German: "Swallow") in fighter versions, or ''Sturmvogel'' (German: "Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the German ...

in 1944.Francillon 1982, pp. 241–242 Boyd led the newly formed Air Force's X-1 supersonic flight program and made the selection of

to pilot the plane. Yeager described Boyd as a strict disciplinarian who would enforce (often with a very loud voice) USAF uniform regulations. He remarked that "You might be his star pilot, but Lord help you if you came before him in his office with an un-shined belt buckle". Boyd was highly respected by his subordinates. Boyd died on September 18, 1976. He and his wife Anna Lu (1907–1981) are buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

.Burial Detail: Boyd, Albert (Section 11, Grave 773-1)
– ANC Explorer

Awards

* Octave Chanute Award *

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight u ...

* Distinguished Flying Cross *

Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in action * Distinguishe ...

* Air Power Trophy * Schilling Award *

Médaille de l'Aéronautique The Aeronautical Medal (french: "Médaille de l'Aéronautique") is a state decoration of France established by the decree of February 14, 1945. It is awarded to both military personnel and civilians for outstanding accomplishments related to t ...

* Brevet Militarire de Pilote d'Aviation * Aerospace Walk of Honor (1991)

References

City of Lancaster AWOH biography
retrieved February 5, 2011.
Air Force Link Biography
retrieved February 5, 2011.

External links

at ArlingtonCemetery.net, an unofficial website {{DEFAULTSORT:Boyd, Albert 1906 births 1976 deaths American aviators American test pilots Aviators from Tennessee Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Aeronautical Medal United States Air Force generals American aviation record holders Burials at Arlington National Cemetery