Naval Air Warfare Center is a research organization within

Naval Air Systems Command The Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) provides materiel support for aeronaval aircraft and airborne weapon systems for the United States Navy. It is one of the Echelon II Navy systems commands (SYSCOM), and was established in 1966 as the succe ...

to test and evaluate air warfare for the United States Navy. The center combines the following divisions:

Aircraft division

The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD) conducts research, development, test, evaluation and sustainment for all

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

and

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

aircraft and aircraft systems. It operates a test wing and ranges, facilities, laboratories and aircraft in support of military operations worldwide. NAWCAD employs military and civilian engineers, testers, scientists, and other professionals across four locations:

Orlando, Florida Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...

;

Lakehurst, New Jersey Lakehurst is a borough in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 2,636, a decrease of 18 (−0.7%) from the 2010 census count of 2,654, which in turn reflected an increa ...

, St. Inigoes, Maryland and at its headquarters in

Patuxent River The Patuxent River is a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay in the state of Maryland. There are three main river drainages for central Maryland: the Potomac River to the west passing through Washington, D.C., the Patapsco River to the northeas ...

, Maryland. It is one of two naval air warfare centers, along with Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, that provides scientific and technical support to Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR).

Naval Test Wing Atlantic

Naval Test Wing Atlantic is made up of four test and evaluation squadrons. Based in Patuxent River, Maryland, the wing supports test and evaluation of aviation systems ranging from unmanned to rotary and fixed-wing aircraft and subsystems. It also provides aircrew, aircraft assets, maintenance support, operational and safety oversight, process and facility support for developmental flight and ground testing. Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Two One (HX-21) supports rotary-wing and tilt-rotor aircraft, unmanned aerial systems and airborne systems, including the

V-22 The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey is an American multi-use, tiltrotor military transport and cargo aircraft with both vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and short takeoff and landing (STOL) capabilities. It is designed to combine the functionalit ...

UH-1Y The Bell UH-1Y Venom (also called Super Huey) is a twin-engine, 4-blade, medium-sized utility helicopter built by Bell Helicopter under the H-1 upgrade program of the United States Marine Corps. One of the latest members of the numerous Huey f ...

AH-1Z The Bell AH-1Z Viper is a twin-engine attack helicopter, based on the AH-1W SuperCobra, designed and produced by the American aerospace manufacturer Bell Helicopter. It is one of the latest members of the prolific Bell Huey family. It is oft ...

CH-53K The Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion (Sikorsky S-95) is a heavy transport helicopter designed and produced by Sikorsky Aircraft. The King Stallion is an evolution of the long running CH-53 series of helicopters which has been in continuous service ...

, MH-60R, and MH-60S. Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Two Zero (VX-20) supports

C-2A The Grumman C-2 Greyhound is a twin-engine, high-wing cargo aircraft designed to carry supplies, mail, and passengers to and from aircraft carriers of the United States Navy. Its primary mission is carrier onboard delivery (COD). The aircraft p ...

, C-12M, C-38, E-2C/D, E 6B, C/KC-130J/T, MQ-4C,

P-8A The Boeing P-8 Poseidon is an American maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft developed and produced by Boeing Defense, Space & Security. It was developed for the United States Navy as a derivative of the civilian Boeing 737 Next Generati ...

, and

T-6A The Beechcraft T-6 Texan II is a single-engine turboprop aircraft built by Textron Aviation. It is a license-built Pilatus PC-9, a trainer aircraft. The T-6 replaced the United States Air Force's Cessna T-37B Tweet and the United States Navy' ...

. Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Two Three (VX-23) supports fixed wing tactical aircraft, including the F/A-18 A/B/C/D and E/F, EA-18, T-45, and F-35B/C. Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Two Four (UX-24) is the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps’ first dedicated test and evaluation squadron for unmanned aircraft systems, including fielded platforms like the Wasp,

RQ-11 Raven The AeroVironment RQ-11 Raven is a small hand-launched remote-controlled unmanned aerial vehicle (or SUAV) developed for the United States military, but now adopted by the military forces of many other countries. The RQ-11 Raven was originally ...

, RQ-20B Puma, RQ-21 Blackjack,

MQ-8 Fire Scout The Northrop Grumman MQ-8 Fire Scout is an unmanned autonomous helicopter developed by Northrop Grumman for use by the United States Armed Forces. The Fire Scout is designed to provide reconnaissance, situational awareness, aerial fire support ...

, and General Atomics MQ-9A Reaper.

U.S. Naval Test Pilot School

The U.S. Naval Test Pilot School (USNTPS) trains military and civilian test pilots, flight officers and engineers in the test and evaluation of aircraft and aircraft systems. Located in Patuxent River, Maryland, it is the only U.S. source of rotary wing test pilots, and serves as the test pilot school for the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

. USNTPS graduates two classes annually. The 11-month program includes 530 academic hours, 100 sorties and 120 flight hours. Its syllabus is divided into three parts: fixed-wing, rotary-wing and airborne systems. The school has also added test techniques for unmanned aviation systems. Its program has graduated over 90

NASA astronauts The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

and members of the Original Seven including

Scott Carpenter Malcolm Scott Carpenter (May 1, 1925 – October 10, 2013) was an American naval officer and aviator, test pilot, aeronautical engineer, astronaut, and aquanaut. He was one of the Mercury Seven astronauts selected for NASA's Project Mercury ...

John Glenn John Herschel Glenn Jr. (July 18, 1921 – December 8, 2016) was an American Marine Corps aviator, astronaut, businessman, and politician. He was the third American in space and the first to orbit the Earth, circling it three times in 1 ...

Wally Schirra Walter Marty Schirra Jr. ( ; March 12, 1923 – May 3, 2007) was an American naval aviator (United States), naval aviator, test pilot, and NASA astronaut. In 1959, he became one of the Mercury Seven, original seven astronauts chosen for Pro ...

, and

Alan Shepard Alan Bartlett Shepard Jr. (November 18, 1923 – July 21, 1998) was an American astronaut. In 1961, he became the second person and the first American to travel into space and, in 1971, he became the List of Apollo astronauts#Apollo astr ...

. It also graduated

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

’s first African-American administrator, Maj. Gen. Charles Bolden, NASA twins

Scott Scott may refer to: Places Canada * Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec * Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380 * Rural Municipality of Scott No. 98, Sas ...

and

Mark Kelly Mark Edward Kelly (born February 21, 1964) is an American politician, retired astronaut, and former United States Navy, naval officer serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States senator from Arizona, a seat he ha ...

, and Vice Adm. James Stockdale.

Atlantic Test Ranges

The

Atlantic Test Range The Atlantic Test Range is a test range of the United States Navy that extends from New Jersey to North Carolina. Administration for the Atlantic Test Range is headquartered within the aircraft division of Naval Air Station Patuxent River. Referen ...

s are instrumented test ranges providing support test and training for aircraft, aircrew and subsystems. The range features a telemetry center for real-time data transmission from up to nine separate in-flight aircraft to ground engineering personnel. The center manages over 2,700 square miles of restricted airspace including targets and airspace over the mid-Atlantic seaboard.

Weapons division

* NAWCWD China Lake * NAWCWD Point Mugu

References

External links

Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division official website
{{Authority control United States naval aviation