Legendary Experimental Test Pilot Retires from U.S. Army Redstone Test Center

REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. (February 28, 2025) - On a sunny Friday on the last day of February, the U.S. Army Redstone Test Center's Aviation Flight Test Directorate bid farewell to a distinguished leader and expert in his field, Mr. Michael "Mike" Meely. Known unofficially around the center as "Mr. Apache," Meely is retiring after an impressive 49 years of service in support of the United States Army.

Meely's career has been marked by exceptional service and contributions to the advancement of military aviation. As a Department of the Army Civilian, he has served for 20 years, leaving behind a legacy of excellence and a profound impact on the U.S. Army's aviation testing community.

Prior to his service as a civilian test pilot, Meely served as an active-duty pilot in the U.S. Army for 29 years. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School as an Experimental Test Pilot and began his journey as a flight test professional with the U.S. Army Aviation Technical Test Center in 2001. After his retirement from active duty, Meely was immediately hired as a Department of the Army Civilian in January 2005 and continued in his test pilot role as ATTC combined with Redstone Technical Test Center to become RTC in 2009.

As the Army's lead experimental test pilot of the AH-64E Guardian aircraft, Meely has brought significant capability to the Warfighter. He led the government's involvement in a Diverse Combined Test Team made up of industry and multiple government agencies that qualified the airframe during a multi-year effort. Since its initial fielding in 2012, Meely has remained committed to improving the AH-64E as the lead tester, overseeing the test and evaluation of all major capability improvements to the AH-64E, including Versions 1, 2, 4.5, and Version 6 iterations of the design.

He established himself as the go-to Subject Matter Expert for Apache software testing. His in-depth knowledge and understanding of the aircraft's systems have enabled him to effectively communicate issues and concerns to the CTT, facilitating timely software enhancements and ensuring the program's success.

After a traditional final flight in an Apache E-Model, Meely was honored with a ceremony held in front of an AH-64E in AFTD's Aviation Test and Instrumentation Integration Facility.

"It's been a long ride. I couldn't have done it without my family who has supported me all these years," said Meely at the retirement ceremony. "The Army trusted me enough to fly their flying machines and shoot things. I put a lot of heart and soul into this model right here, this Apache, and I hope it keeps the peace in our country, it's what it is designed for."

Meely's influence in the Apache test community is immeasurable, and he has guided the next generation of experimental test pilots to be the best in the world. With a storied aviation career that totals over 8,500 hours of incident and accident-free flying, including over 1,760 experimental test hours and over 2,700 total hours as a DAC, Meely has left an undeniable impact on Army aviation, the Army Test and Evaluation Command, and the Apache community.

AFTD's executive officer Lt. Col. J.D. Sauer hosted the ceremony to honor Meely's retirement.

"Mike's contributions will be remembered for years to come," said Sauer during his remarks at the ceremony. "I can't thank you enough for the years of mentorship you've provided to me and to so many aviators and flight test engineers in this room."

As he retires, Meely leaves behind a legacy of excellence and a profound impact on the U.S. Army's aviation testing community. His contributions will be remembered, and his expertise will be deeply missed.

RTC is located on Redstone Arsenal and is a subordinate command of the U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command. RTC provides technical expertise, state-of-the-art facilities, and capabilities to plan, conduct, analyze, and report the results of tests on missile and aviation systems, sensors, subsystems, and components.