Page 4 - Aerotech News and Review, Oct. 18, 2019

EAGLES, from 3
Thomas J. test force), and signature verification sorties, as well as the checkout of additional Calif., as well as continuing to support CTF developmental flight test. From his
office at Plant 42, he was in a unique position to work closely with the Northrop
test pilots.
LeBeau Stealth Week event. Before retiring from the Air Force as a lieutenant colonel in Grumman engineering team, an effective arrangement that greatly facilitated many
He returned AV-1 back from Andrews Air Force Base, Md., after the June 1991
aircraft upgrades.
(cont.) 1992, LeBeau flew 26 B-2 sorties. that upgraded the B-2 to use 40,000-pounds of independently targeted GPS guided
One notable example was his role as sole pilot member of the 2006 design team
In 1993, he was hired by Northrop Grumman in B-2 production activity, and by
1995 was back on the B-2 test team as a Northrop Grumman test pilot. His work JDAM-82s. His work with this system established an operating legacy that remains
included all aspects of the remaining Engineering Manufacturing Development and, essentially unchanged today. The system saw action in January 2017 when two B-2s
after June 1997, when EMD ended, on to B-2 follow-on flight test of aircraft new delivered 103 JDAM-82s against terrorist training camps in Libya.
system and software upgrades. During EMD and after, he supported all manner of LeBeau carried the additional role of Flight Manual maintenance, establishing
flight test work including weapon, terrain following and signature tests, as well as the flight test role as a member of the flight manual review and update team based
continued chase support in F-16 and T-38 aircraft. at Tinker Air Force Base, Okla., another critical activity that continues today.
In 2001, LeBeau took on primary responsibility for the Production Flight Activity LeBeau retired from Northrop Grumman in 2013, with more than 1,600 hours
with the Depot and Modification Center at Site 4, Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, in the B-2, to his home in Quartz Hill, Calif., where he lives with his wife Chris.
Robert G. School. He received his bachelor of science in mechanical engineering from New country’s future national security.” His leadership during EMD saw the develop-
Robert G. Myers is from Santa Fe, N.M., and attended Albuquerque High
ment of six test aircraft, and management of a 2,000 plus man test force, through
Myers Mexico A&M (now NMSU) in 1958, and was awarded the honor of New Mexico myriad technical and programmatic challenges, not least of which was congres-
State University Distinguished Alumnus in 2009.
sional pressure that ultimately reduced the program from 132 to 20 and then back
During college, Myers transferred from the U.S. Naval Reserve to the U.S. Air to 21 aircraft. Despite this program setback, Myers efforts produced an airplane
Force Reserve, and upon graduating and commissioning served at McChord Air that played key roles in many subsequent U.S. military operations, starting with
Force Base, Wash., and other locations as an air base civil engineer. During this Operation Allied Force in Kosovo in 1999, and continuing to this day in a 2018
period, he received his master’s degree in aerospace engineering from Golden State “show of force” over South Korea. In 1998, after the 1997 completion of EMD he,
University in Sacramento, Calif. After completing active duty, he continued to and site manager Larry McCLain, accepted the 1997 Aviation Week Laurate Ward
serve with Air Defense Command at Colorado Springs, Colo., in a reserve officer on behalf of their team for “an aggressive eight-year flight test program with no
civil engineering capacity. During that period, he also became a U.S. Air Force major accidents and no major incidents,” and having “worked closely with a suc-
Academy Liaison Officer, representing and recruiting for the Air Force Academy. cession of B-2 program managers and Combined Test Force directors to effectively
After receiving his degree, he worked for Boeing on several projects includ- manage risks, while still meeting demanding goals and schedules.”
ing the Bomarc Missile, M-X Missile, Reentry Systems Vehicle, B-1B bomber, Myers later retired from Northrop Grumman and continued for several years to
Advance Cruise Missile, Advanced Launch Cruise Missile and the Short Range support B-2 and other programs as called upon as a consultant.
Attack Missile I/II. Many of his later Northrop Grumman flight test coworkers He is a retired Air Force Reserve officer, and a member of many professional
were acquaintances during this period. groups, including the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the American
Later, he managed all projects at the Boeing Mojave Test Center. Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the Air Force Association, Reserve Of-
In 1990, Myers moved to Northrop as the vice president for the Northrop Mili- ficers Association and the New Mexico State University Mechanical Engineering
tary B-2 Stealth Bomber Flight Test Program, then as vice president for Northrop Academy. He has received the Air Force Commendation Medal, and the Air Force
Military Aircraft Systems Division Test and Evaluation. He led the Northrop Grum- Academy Distinguished Unit Medal.
man team during the B-2 Engineering Manufacturing Development during which Myers, and his wife Sherry, live in Tehachapi, Calif., from where they travel
the Air Force/Northrop team won the prestigious 1991 Robert J. Collier Trophy for often to visit family and friends.
“contributing significantly to America’s enduring leadership in aerospace and the See EAGLES, Page 5

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