David Best (pilot)

Last updated
David Best
Born23 December 1960 (1960-12-23) (age 62)
Alma materBristol University
Occupation(s)Test pilot
Business executive
Employer(s)SkyBoss Aerospace Ltd (founder and CEO)
TitleCommander of the Empire Test Pilots' School (1998-2001)
AwardsOBE

Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air

Contents

RP Alston Medal from the Royal Aeronautical Society

Legion of Merit

Air Commodore David Best (OBE FRAeS) (born 23 December 1960) is a British test pilot and businessman. He served in the Royal Air Force from 1979 to 2012. In 2012 he co-founded Nova Systems International and in 2022 he founded SkyBoss Aerospace Ltd. He is a Fellow of both the Royal Aeronautical Society and the Society of Experimental Test Pilots.

Early life and education

David Best was born on 23 December 1960 in County Durham, England and moved to South East London at age 7. He attended Chislehurst and Sidcup Grammar School where he became Head of School and he then studied physics at Bristol University, graduating in 1982. Best was a member of Bristol University Air Squadron before becoming an RAF fighter pilot. He was subsequently selected for test pilot training and attended the Empire Test Pilots ' School in 1989. [1] In 1993 he was awarded a Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air. [2]

Military career

Best was commander of the Empire Test Pilots’ School from 1998 to 2001 and was UK MoD Chief Test Pilot from 2004 to 2007. [3] Best was appointed Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in 2001. [4]

In 2010, Best was appointed as NATO's Director of Air Operations and Plans in Kabul, Afghanistan. [5]

Business career

Best became a co-founder, Chief Operating Officer and executive director of Nova Systems International. He was also the company's Chief Test Pilot from 2012 to 2021. In 2022, Best was awarded the RP Alston Medal from the Royal Aeronautical Society. He was cited for his “outstanding career contributions to test flying, operational military leadership and industrial entrepreneurialism including the exploitation of novel aerospace technologies in the fields of flight control, unmanned aerial systems (UAS) and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR).” [3] In 2022 Best founded SkyBoss Aerospace Ltd. [6]

Recognition

Best has been elected a Fellow of both the Royal Aeronautical Society and the Society of Experimental Test Pilots. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geoffrey de Havilland</span> English aircraft engineer (1882–1965)

Captain Sir Geoffrey de Havilland, was an English aviation pioneer and aerospace engineer. The aircraft company he founded produced the Mosquito, which has been considered the most versatile warplane ever built, and his Comet was the first jet airliner to go into production.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Test pilot</span> Pilot with extra training to test aircraft

A test pilot is an aircraft pilot with additional training to fly and evaluate experimental, newly produced and modified aircraft with specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Aeronautical Society</span> British multi-disciplinary professional institution

The Royal Aeronautical Society, also known as the RAeS, is a British multi-disciplinary professional institution dedicated to the global aerospace community. Founded in 1866, it is the oldest aeronautical society in the world. Members, Fellows, and Companions of the society can use the post-nominal letters MRAeS, FRAeS, or CRAeS, respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward Ellington</span> British Army general and Marshal of the Royal Air Force (1877-1967)

Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Edward Leonard Ellington, was a senior officer in the Royal Air Force. He served in the First World War as a staff officer and then as director-general of military aeronautics and subsequently as controller-general of equipment. In the inter-war years he held command positions in the Middle East, in India and then in Iraq. He served as Chief of the Air Staff in the mid-1930s and in that role he implemented a plan, known as 'Scheme F'. This scheme implemented an increase in the size of the Royal Air Force to 187 squadrons within three years to counter the threat from Hitler's Germany. He also broke up the command known as "Air Defence of Great Britain" to create RAF Fighter Command, RAF Bomber Command, RAF Coastal Command and RAF Training Command. He then served as Inspector-General of the RAF until his retirement in 1940.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norman Macmillan (RAF officer)</span> Scottish officer

Wing Commander Norman Macmillan was a Scottish officer of the Royal Air Force, a World War I flying ace, test pilot, and author.

Captain Frank Sowter Barnwell OBE AFC FRAeS BSc was a Scottish aeronautical engineer. With his elder brother Harold, he built the first successful powered aircraft made in Scotland and later went on to a career as an aircraft designer with the Bristol Aeroplane Company, designing aircraft such as the Bristol Fighter, the Bulldog and the Blenheim.

Air Chief Marshal Sir David George Evans, was a senior commander of the Royal Air Force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Trubshaw</span> British test pilot

Ernest Brian Trubshaw, CBE, MVO was a leading test pilot, and the first British pilot to fly Concorde, in April 1969.

Richard Frewen Martin, was a British test pilot. He was born in Bournemouth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Harper (RAF officer)</span> Royal Air Force Air Chief Marshal (born 1957)

Air Marshal Sir Christopher Nigel Harper, is a senior Royal Air Force officer, who served as the UK Military Representative to NATO and the European Union from 2011 to 2013 and as Director General of the NATO International Military Staff from 2013 to 2016. He was previously Deputy Commander Allied Joint Force Command at Brunssum in the Netherlands (2009–11), and Air Officer Commanding No. 1 Group in the UK (2007–09).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ralph Sorley</span> Royal Air Force Air Marshal (1898-1974)

Air Marshal Sir Ralph Squire Sorley, was a senior commander in the Royal Air Force (RAF). He began as a pilot in the Royal Naval Air Service during the First World War, and rose to senior command in the Second World War. After the latter he held several senior appointments until his retirement in 1948. and in 1947 was made a Commander of the Legion of Merit of the United States of America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cyril Uwins</span>

Cyril Frank Uwins OBE, AFC, FRAeS (1896–1972) was a British test pilot who worked for Bristol Aeroplane Company, where he made the first flight of 58 types of aircraft. On 16 September 1932 he broke the world aeroplane height record by climbing to 43,976 ft (13,404 m). He eventually became the Deputy Chairman of Bristol Aircraft. He was also Chairman of the Society of British Aircraft Manufacturer between 1956 and 1958, and he was awarded the Royal Aeronautical Society silver medal for aeronautics.

Air Commodore Allen Henry Wheeler was a Royal Air Force officer and pilot who served during the Second World War. He was later trustee of the Shuttleworth Trust, a collection of vintage cars and aircraft.

Squadron Leader Ernest Derek 'Dave' Glaser was a British Royal Air Force officer of the Battle of Britain, and later a notable test pilot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Wigston</span> British air marshal

Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Wigston, is a former senior officer in the Royal Air Force, who served as Chief of the Air Staff from 26 July 2019 until 2 June 2023. He previously served as Assistant Chief of the Air Staff from 2017 to 2018, and Deputy Commander (Personnel) and Air Member for Personnel and Capability from 2018 to 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keith Blount</span>

Admiral Sir Keith Edward Blount, is a senior Royal Navy officer and pilot, who since July 2023 serves as NATO's Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe. He was Assistant Chief of Naval Staff and head of the Fleet Air Arm from 2015 to 2019. He served as Commander Allied Maritime Command, NATO, from 2019 to 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter J. M. Squires</span> Royal Air Force officer

Air Vice-Marshal Peter James Murray Squires, is a senior Royal Air Force officer, who currently serves as the Commander of British Forces Cyprus. From August 2016 to October 2019 he served as Commandant of RAF College Cranwell. He was formerly a Harrier pilot and served as commander of No. 100 Squadron RAF, flying BAE Systems Hawks.

Air Vice-Marshal Ian Brackenbury, CB, OBE, FIMechE, CEng is a former senior Royal Air Force officer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jenny Body</span> British aerospace engineer

Jennifer Mary Body is a British aerospace engineer, the former President of the Royal Aeronautical Society.

David Pettit Davies was a British test pilot who was chief test pilot for the United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority for 33 years. He was known as "the test pilots' test pilot".

References

  1. Cockpit. Society of Experimental Test Pilots. 1992. p. 55.
  2. "Page 1 | Supplement 53332, 11 June 1993 | London Gazette | The Gazette". www.thegazette.co.uk.
  3. 1 2 "2021 Honours, Medals & Awards" (PDF). Royal Aeronautical Society. 2021. p. 12.
  4. "Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE), Supplement 56430". London Gazette. December 31, 2001. p. 6.
  5. "Viewpoints". Air Power Review. Summer 2012. p. 87.
  6. 1 2 "Oxford Lecture: Test Pilot - still a good job?". Royal Aeronautical Society.