REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. (October 1, 2020) – Maj. Simon Beattie, an experimental test pilot (XP) from the United Kingdom (UK) currently serving at the U.S. Army Redstone Test Center (RTC) as part of the Military Personnel Exchange Program (MPEP), is the 2020 Robert N. Turk Award recipient.
The Robert N. Turk Award is presented to the individual within the RTC Aviation Flight Test Directorate (AFTD) who has made the most significant contribution to Army engineering flight testing during the last year.
It is awarded in memory of Robert N. Turk who passed away on May 26, 1964, near Delano, California during a test flight in a Hiller LOH-5.
Beattie provided exemplary service to RTC and the entire Army aviation acquisition community while serving as the test director and senior XP for the AH-64E 30mm Gun Accuracy Improvement Test Program. Beattie was presented the award by RTC’s AFTD commander Lt. Col. Joe Minor and Deputy Commander Justin Powell during a recent awards ceremony held at AFTD.
Over the last year, Beattie has participated in more than six weeks of gun accuracy flight testing at Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona. He accumulated more than 100 flight hours and fired more than 44,000 rounds of 30mm.
Beattie’s efforts were extraordinarily significant in that he successfully applied his engineering flight test techniques in conjunction with his extensive background of operational aviation service to expose the root cause of accuracy issues reported from the field. His efforts culminated in the development of a white paper and aviator training package that was published to AH-64E units and taught as an essential element of standardization procedures.
“Maj. Beattie commands respect as one of the most knowledgeable (XPs) in the organization, and his outstanding creativity, operational acumen, and exceptional performance of duty is in keeping with the finest traditions of the U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC), the Aviation Flight Test Directorate and RTC”, said Minor.
While Beattie serves at RTC, CW4 Nate Woelke is the ATEC exchange pilot in the UK on the MPEP program serving as an XP for the UK Rotary Wing Test Squadron at Boscome Down, United Kingdom. He is on a three year exchange tour to work as an XP and officer for the UK Army.
Social Sharing