PATUXENT RIVER NAVAL AIR STATION, MD—The United States Naval Test Pilot School will host its 56th annual symposium and reunion here April 22 and 23. Several format changes have been made to the reunion over previous year’s events.

This year’s event kicks-off with a four-person scramble golf tournament beginning at 1:30 p.m. April 22. A hole-in-one prize of a 2004 Ford vehicle, courtesy of a local dealership, will be presented to the first person who gets a hole-in-one on the designated par three. The golf tournament will be followed by a casual evening reception at the Patuxent River Naval Air Museum.

Events April 23 begin with a continental breakfast at 8 a.m., followed by a Technical Symposium from 8:30 to 11 a.m. and 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. The symposium will be comprised of eight presentations chosen from submissions on current test projects at Patuxent River, Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division China Lake, Calif., NAWCWD Point Mugu, Calif., Fort Rucker, Ala., Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., and Edwards AFB, Calif. The program will provide an opportunity for publicity and professional acknowledgment of current efforts of USNTPS alumni.

Abstracts for proposed presentations are due by March 15 to Lt. Cmdr. Jay Elliott, the USNTPS Technical Symposium point of contact. Elliott can be reached at 301-757-5029 or DSN 757-5029 or via e-mail to [email protected]. Submissions may be faxed to 301-342-5940. Selections will be made by April 1.

Naval Test Wing Atlantic will hold its awards luncheon at 11:30 a.m. April 23. The guest speaker will be Brian Binnie of Scaled Composites, a U.S. Naval Test Pilot School graduate, and a test pilot in the SpaceShipOne Project in Mojave, Calif. The day's activities end with a "fly-in" social at 5 p.m.

A tour to the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum "Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center" at the Washington Dulles International Airport will be offered April 23. Bus transportation will be available.

Alumni who haven't been in contact with the school recently are asked to send their mailing addresses to:
Commanding Officer
U.S. Naval Test Pilot School
22783 Cedar Point Road
Patuxent River, MD 20670-1160
Alumni also may contact the alumni clerk at 301-757-5013 or 301-757-5010.

The symposium and reunion provide a forum for the exchange of aviation research, development, test and evaluation information and also establishes a vehicle for the renewal of professional acquaintances within the test and evaluation community. For more information, contact reunion coordinators Lt. Cmdr. Neal Kraft at 301-757-5049 or e-mail to [email protected] or Richard Greenleaf at 301-757-5018 or e-mail to [email protected]. Visit TPS’s Web site at http://www.usntps.navy.mil or e-mail the school at [email protected] for more information.

—USN—