Paul Metz

Prior to joining Rocketplane Global, Paul Metz served as Vice President for Integrated Test and Evaluation (Flight Test) on Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program from 2001 until his retirement in February 2006. He had previously served as Lockheed Martin’s Chief Test Pilot for the F-22 Advanced Tactical Fighter from 1992-2001 and made the first flight on the F-22A Raptor on September 7, 1997. Prior to joining Lockheed Martin, he was an Engineering Test Pilot and Chief Test Pilot for Northrop Aircraft for 12 years. He made the first flight of the YF-23A Advanced Tactical Fighter in August 1990 while at Northrop Grumman. He also served as an engineering test pilot on the B-2 program, was an F-105G Wild Weasel pilot in the USAF for twelve years and was decorated for combat missions in Southeast Asia. Metz is a Fellow and past-president of the Society of Experimental Test. In 1992, he received the Kincheloe Award, the test pilot profession’s highest award, for his flight testing of the YF-23 Advanced Tactical Fighter prototype. In 2002 he was enshrined in the Aerospace Walk of Honor at Lancaster, California, the gateway to the USAF Flight Test Center. He has written numerous articles on the flight test of modern fighter aircraft. He has over 7,000 hours and more than 37 years of experience flying 70 aircraft types including the F-86, F-105, F-4, F-5, F-15, F-20, YF-23 and F-22. He received a bachelor's degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from the Ohio State University, Summa Cum Laude, in 1968. His graduate studies have been in Aeronautical Engineering at Ohio State and California State University, Fresno and Aviation Safety at the Naval Post Graduate School, Monterey, California.