Darrell Eugene Cornell (August 19, 1932 - October 10, 1984) was Northrop's chief test pilot in the early 1980s. He was killed on October 10, 1984, at

Suwon Air Base Suwon Air Base is a Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) base near Suwon city. Units The base is home to the ROKAF's 10th Fighter Wing (제10전투비행단), comprising: *101st Fighter Squadron flying KF-5E/KF-5F/F-5F *153rd Fighter Squadron f ...

, while performing a demonstration flight for the

South Korean Air Force The Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF; ko, 대한민국 공군; RR: ''Daehanminguk Gong-gun''), also known as the ROK Air Force or South Korean Air Force, is the aerial warfare service branch of South Korea, operating under the Ministry of N ...

(ROKAF). The

F-20 The Northrop F-20 Tigershark (initially F-5G) is a light fighter, designed and built by Northrop. Its development began in 1975 as a further evolution of Northrop's F-5E Tiger II, featuring a new engine that greatly improved overall performa ...

, ''82-0062'', c/n GG1001, N4416T, he was piloting stalled after a series of climbing rolls performed with flaps and gear extended. Cornell was not able to recover the aircraft from the uncontrolled stall. Cornell was also the lead test pilot for Northrop's RF-5E Tigereye, a reconnaissance version of the low-cost F-5E fighter aircraft. He was featured in the April 1984 issue of ''

LIFE Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...

'' magazine in an article entitled "

Edwards Air Force Base Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force installation in California. Most of the base sits in Kern County, but its eastern end is in San Bernardino County and a southern arm is in Los Angeles County. The hub of the base is E ...

Pilots", together with Doug Benefieds, Chuck Sewell,

Tony LeVier Anthony W. LeVier (February 14, 1913 – February 6, 1998) was an American air racer and test pilot for the Lockheed Corporation from the 1940s to the 1970s. Early life Born Anthony Puck in Duluth, Minnesota, his father died while he was still ...

, and Russell O'Quinn. Cornell was born in

Moorhead, Minnesota Moorhead () is a city in and county seat of Clay County, Minnesota, United States, on the banks of the Red River of the North. Located in the Red River Valley, an extremely fertile and active agricultural region, Moorhead is also home to several ...

, grew up in

Fargo, North Dakota Fargo ( /ˈfɑɹɡoʊ/) is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, United States. According to the 2020 census, its population was 125,990, making it the most populous city in the state and the 219th-most populous city in ...

, and was a former

USAF The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

pilot. He was an alumnus of

North Dakota State University North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota. It was founded as North ...

. He was also an astronaut candidate with

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeedi ...

in 1963, although he was not selected to join

Group 3 Group 3 may refer to: *Group 3 element, chemical element classification *Group 3 (racing), FIA classification for auto racing * Group 3, the third tier of races in worldwide Thoroughbred horse racing * Group 3 image format, Group 3 & Group 4 are ...

. He began at Northrop in 1962. His display performances flying the

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

(

Le Bourget Le Bourget () is a commune in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. The commune features Le Bourget Airport, which in turn hosts the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace (Air and Space Museum). A very ...

1983) and

Farnborough Farnborough may refer to: Australia * Farnborough, Queensland, a locality in the Shire of Livingstone United Kingdom * Farnborough, Hampshire, a town in the Rushmoor district of Hampshire, England ** Farnborough (Main) railway station, a rail ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

in 1984 are remembered by many as some of the finest ever performed at these airshows.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cornell, Darrell 1932 births 1984 deaths American test pilots Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents Military personnel from Minnesota Military personnel from North Dakota North Dakota State University alumni People from Fargo, North Dakota People from Moorhead, Minnesota United States Air Force officers Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1984 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in South Korea