test pilot
noun
: a pilot who specializes in putting new or experimental airplanes through maneuvers designed to test them (as for strength) by producing strains in excess of normal
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Chosen from more than 8,000 applicants, the incoming astronaut class includes test pilots, engineers and scientists – including one woman who, significantly, has already spent time in orbit.
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Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 23 Sep. 2025
Jones is a test pilot with more than 1,600 flight hours in more than 30 different aircraft, including 150 combat hours.
—Robert Pearlman, ArsTechnica, 22 Sep. 2025
He was later accepted and became a combat fighter pilot and qualified for the test pilot program at Edwards AFB.
—John Baldoni, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2025
Four astronauts returned to Earth after hustling to the International Space Station five months ago to relieve the stuck test pilots of Boeing’s Starliner.
—Jeremy Mikula, NBC news, 10 Aug. 2025
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Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 23 Sep. 2025
Jones is a test pilot with more than 1,600 flight hours in more than 30 different aircraft, including 150 combat hours.
—Robert Pearlman, ArsTechnica, 22 Sep. 2025
He was later accepted and became a combat fighter pilot and qualified for the test pilot program at Edwards AFB.
—John Baldoni, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2025
Four astronauts returned to Earth after hustling to the International Space Station five months ago to relieve the stuck test pilots of Boeing’s Starliner.
—Jeremy Mikula, NBC news, 10 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for test pilot
Cite this Entry
“Test pilot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/test%20pilot. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.
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