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Charles Thomas Coleman (1962 or 1963 – October 20, 2024) was an American aviator, aerospace engineer and airshow & test pilot.[1][2] He worked as a design and performance engineer for several aircraft corporations such as McDonnell Aircraft Corporation, Bede Jet Corporation and Scaled Composites. Coleman was a member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots SETP as an Associate Fellow, and served on the board of directors for the Mojave Air and Space Port. As a commercial, test, and instructor pilot, he logged more than 10,800 hours of flight time.
Chuck Coleman | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Coleman in 2019 | |
| Born | 1962 or 1963 Michigan, U.S. |
| Died | (aged 61) Las Cruces, New Mexico, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Michigan |
| Occupations | |
| Website | ctcoleman |
Early life and education
editColeman was raised in St. Johns, Michigan, by Thomas Coleman and JoAnn (Benedict) Smith.[3] He graduated from the University of Michigan in 1985 with a Bachelor's of Science in Aerospace/Mechanical Engineering.[4]
Career
editColeman was a design engineer for 6 years at McDonnell Aircraft Corporation in St. Louis, Missouri. He was involved in military jet projects including serving as the Senior Design Engineer on the High Alpha Research Vehicle, a modified F/A-18 Hornet, utilized by NASA to investigate controlled flight at high angles of attack by way of thrust vectoring.[5][6]
Coleman also served as a Senior Engineer on the F/A-18 conversion from combat-ready aircraft into performance planes for the United States Navy Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron.[3]
He was a project engineer at the Bede Jet Corporation in Chesterfield, Missouri at the Spirit of St. Louis Airport. He served as the test pilot on the BD-10, a kit-built experimental jet aircraft, and BD-12, a two-seat experimental plane with a pusher configuration.[6]
Coleman joined Scaled Composites in Mojave, California as a performance engineer, test pilot, and chase pilot in 2002.[4][7] He was on a team of five engineers that designed, constructed, and flight tested the Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer, which was the first jet powered aircraft to fly around the world non-stop un-refueled.[3][8][9][10]
Coleman was also a test pilot for the Proteus high altitude jet and tested the Tier One Navigation System for SpaceShipOne, as well as conducting high-G astronaut training for SpaceShipOne astronauts and serving as chase pilot for SpaceShipOne flights.[1] Coleman also served as a test pilot for the ICON A5, an American amphibious light-sport aircraft.[11][12]
Performance
editColeman performed at numerous airshows and flew aerobatic planes for Patty Wagstaff, Gene Soucy, Ian Groom, Tim Weber, Sean D. Tucker,[13] Discovery Channel, Toyota Airsports, and Paramount Pictures. In 2018, Coleman trained the lead actors starring in Top Gun: Maverick featuring Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, and Jennifer Connelly. Coleman conducted 140 G tolerance training flights in an Extra EA-300 with actors Glen Powell, Miles Teller, Monica Barbaro, Jay Ellis, Lewis Pullman, and Danny Ramirez, in a flight training regime designed by Cruise. These aerobatic flights were conducted in order to prepare the actors for flight in F/A-18F Super Hornets during actual filming.[3][14][15]
Death
editOn October 20, 2024, Coleman died in a crash during the Las Cruces Air & Space Expo at Las Cruces International Airport. He was 61 years old.[16] The crash occurred around 2:30 pm.[17] Coleman was performing aerobatics when his Extra EA-300 plane crashed half a mile west of the airport.[18]
Awards
editColeman won two Collier Trophies for his involvement in the development of the McDonnell Douglas C-17 Globemaster (1994)[19][20] and Scaled Composites’ SpaceShipOne (2004).[21][22] Coleman was also part of the Scaled Composites team that won the Ansari X Prize, a space competition in which the X Prize Foundation offered a cash prize for the first non-government organization to launch a reusable crewed spacecraft into space twice within two weeks.[4]
References
edit- ^ a b "Crash of Virgin Galactic craft highlights dangerous lives of private test pilots". Washington Post. 5 November 2014. ISSN 0190-8286.
- ^ "Chuck Coleman". Aerotech News. 10 November 2016.
- ^ a b c d "Aerobatics pilot's trade isn't for faint of heart". Shoreline Media Group. 2 July 2015. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ a b c "New directors installed at Mojave Air & Spaceport". The Loop Newspaper. January 30, 2021.
- ^ "Flight Testing of a New Air Launch Method for Safely Launching Personnel and Cargo into Low Earth Orbit". ResearchGate. January 2006.
- ^ a b "About Chuck". Mojave Air & Space Port. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ "Can a Small Start-up Build America's Next Spaceship?". Popular Science. 13 September 2005. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ "The Next Last Great Milestone". Flying Magazine. 6 April 2004.
- ^ "1 Jet Engine & 18,000 Pounds of Fuel". Popular Science. 18 January 2004.
- ^ "Looking to Log a Flight Record". Los Angeles Times. 9 January 2004.
- ^ Hansen, Cathy (10 January 2021). "2020 in Review at Mojave Air and Space Port". Aerotech News & Review. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ "Icon A5 Light-Sport Aircraft Review". Flying Magazine. 19 August 2015.
- ^ "Grin: Sean D Tucker graciously gives me a big grin and a thumbs up at my request, as Chuck Coleman maintains a tight formation with Sean and our photo ship". Air & Space Magazine. Archived from the original on 26 July 2021.
- ^ "A philanthropic airshow". General Aviation News. January 6, 2019.
- ^ "Mojave Air & Space Port swears in three new board directors". Aerotech News & Review. 10 December 2020.
- ^ Diaz, Johnny (October 22, 2024). "Pilot Killed in New Mexico Air Show Crash Instructed 'Top Gun' Actors". The New York Times. Retrieved October 24, 2024.
- ^ "Well-known pilot Chuck Coleman killed in air show crash in Las Cruces". KTSM 9 News. 21 October 2024.
- ^ "A pilot killed in a plane crash at a New Mexico air show was an instructor for 'Top Gun' actors". Associated Press. 21 October 2024.
- ^ "RIVERSIDE: Airshow to return March 28 with demonstrations, family fun". Press Enterprise. 25 March 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
- ^ "Collier 1990–1999 Recipients". National Aeronautic Association.
- ^ "Collier 2000–2009 Recipients". National Aeronautic Association.
- ^ "Historic Space Launch Attempt for SpaceShipOne Scheduled for June 21". www.spaceref.com. 2 June 2004.[permanent dead link]
External links
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