NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Frank Batteas Frank Batteas is the chief pilot of the Flight Crew Branch of NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif. He directs the activities of Dryden's research and aircraft pilots, flight engineers, flight test engineers, navigators and life support technicians. As a senior test pilot, he flies F/A-18, T-38, King Air, B-747, Gulfstream III, and C-17 research projects. His recent NASA projects include the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy flight testing, Autonomous Air Refueling Demonstration, C-17 and B-757 Throttle Only Control projects, F-18 Low Boom/No Boom supersonic project, and F-15 Intelligent Flight Control System project. Batteas has accumulated more than 6,500 hours of military and civilian flight experience in more than 50 different aircraft types.

Batteas previously served as project pilot on the NASA B-52B launch aircraft and DC-8 research aircraft. He was involved in a series of development air launches of the X-38 Crew Recovery Vehicle and the launches of the hypersonic X-43A Hyper-X supersonic-combustion ramjet ("scramjet") project from the B-52B. As a pilot for NASA's DC-8 Airborne Science flying laboratory, Batteas deployed worldwide to support a variety of research studies, including atmospheric physics, ground mapping and meteorology.

Batteas came to NASA Dryden in April 1998, following a career in the U.S. Air Force. His last assignment was at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio, where Batteas led the B-2 Systems Test and Evaluation efforts for a two-year period.

Batteas graduated from Class 88A of the Air Force Test Pilot School, Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., in December 1988. He served more than five years as a test pilot for the C-17 and was involved in much of the testing, from flutter and high angle-of-attack tests to airdrop and air refueling envelope expansion. In the process, he achieved several C-17 firsts including the first day and night aerial refueling, the first flight over the North Pole, and a payload-to-altitude world aviation record. As a KC-135 test pilot, he also was involved in aerial refueling certification tests on a number of other Air Force aircraft.

Batteas received his commission as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force through the Reserve Officer Training Corps and served initially as an engineer working on the Peacekeeper and Minuteman missile programs at the Ballistic Missile Office, Norton Air Force Base, Calif. After attending pilot training at Williams Air Force Base, Phoenix, Ariz., he flew operational flights in the KC-135 tanker aircraft and then was assigned to research flying at the 4950th Test Wing, Wright-Patterson. He flew extensively modified C-135 and C-18 aircraft. In addition, he was project manager and research pilot for aurora borealis studies on the Airborne Ionospheric Observatory.

Batteas earned a Bachelor of Science in nuclear engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, N.Y., in 1977. He was awarded a Master of Science in systems management from the University of Southern California in 1980 and in mechanical engineering from California State University Fresno in 1991.

October 2007