History of the Patch

Legend has it the original Aircraft Rotary Wing Test Directorate patch (right) was designed on the kitchen table of the first Test Director, Richard "Dick" Wernecke, and has remained in place to this day. Since that time, OPNAVINST 5030.4F has come into effect, changing the specifications governing squadron patches, requiring HX-21 to redesign the current insignia. The redesigned patch is symbolic in many ways and shares similarities with the original. The genesis of the new design is as follows:

Crossed Rotor Blades: The crossed blades are found in the original design and are a classic reference to helicopter flight test. The red center portion of the rotor head
preserves the "T" in Rotary Wing, depicted above in the original design.

Blackjack: The Blackjack is a heraldic symbol used to illustrate the squadrons’ designation of 21, or the winning hand. The 3-D image of the Blackjack grabbing the Ace is symbolic of the Test Teams taking control of the situation.

Sword: The sword shown represents the strength, courage and determination required to make the tough decisions and stand one's ground when challenged.

Color and Pattern: The patch is predominately black due to the blackjack call sign, while adding red, yellow and white rounds out the colors of the Maryland State flag.

Overview

Air Test and Evaluation Squadron TWO ONE (HX-21) performs developmental testing and evaluation of all Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard rotary wing/tilt-rotor aircraft, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)

Unmanned aerial vehicle

An unmanned aerial vehicle , also known as a unmanned aircraft system , remotely piloted aircraft or unmanned aircraft, is a machine which functions either by the remote control of a navigator or pilot or autonomously, that is, as a self-directing entity...

 and associated sensor and weapons systems. A wide range of aircraft testing and support is provided to include flying qualities, aircraft performance and aeromechanics, shipboard suitability, tactical aircraft mission systems testing, ordnance compatibility, ballistics, system reliability and maintainability assessments, flight simulator/simulation fidelity, and aircraft software development. Support is also provided to a variety of industry and international developmental efforts to include shipboard envelope development and expansion, day and night electro-optical capabilities, and flight test technique improvements.

Composition

The squadron has roughly 40 Officers and 50 Enlisted personnel from the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard as well as over 400 civil service and contractor employees directly involved with maintenance, planning, safety, support and operations of its fleet of H-1, H-3, H-46, H-53, H-57, H-60, MQ-8B and V-22 series aircraft and UAVs .
HX-21 is actively engaged in the development of the next generation of rotary wing/tilt-rotor and UAV systems supporting Surface Warfare (SUW), Undersea Warfare (USW), Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR), NSW (Naval Special Warfare), Airborne Mine Counter Measure (AMCM), Logistics, Maritime Supremacy and Vertical Assault missions, as well as responding to a variety of emerging and urgent requirements from current overseas contingency operations. The major flight test program platforms underway include the AH-1Z Viper

AH-1Z Viper

The Bell AH-1Z Viper is a twin-engine attack helicopter based on the AH-1W SuperCobra, that was developed for the United States Marine Corps. The AH-1Z features a four-blade, bearingless, composite main rotor system, uprated transmission, and a new target sighting system. The AH-1Z is part of the...

, UH-1Y Huey, MV-22B Osprey

V-22 Osprey

The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey is an American multi-mission, military, tiltrotor aircraft with both a vertical takeoff and landing , and short takeoff and landing capability...

, CH-46E Sea Knight, CH-53E Super Stallion

CH-53E Super Stallion

The Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion is the largest and heaviest helicopter in the United States military. It was developed from the CH-53 Sea Stallion, mainly by adding a third engine, a seventh blade to the main rotor and canting the tail rotor 20 degrees. Sailors commonly refer to the Super...

, MH-60R Seahawk and MH-60S Seahawk, and the MQ-8B Fire Scout UAV.

HX-21 Test Pilot Requirements

To become a test pilot, one must be a seasoned operational pilot who is selected for and completes a military Test Pilot School such as the United States Naval Test Pilot School (USNTPS)

United States Naval Test Pilot School

The United States Naval Test Pilot School , located at Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Patuxent River, Maryland, provides instruction to experienced United States Navy, Marine Corps, Army, Air Force, and foreign military experimental test pilots, flight test engineers, and flight test...

, a highly selective school for the best qualified fleet pilots and flight officers from every branch of military service, as well as civilian engineers. Students learn new flight test techniques, how to draft and publish test reports and how to conduct special test and evaluation projects on various types of aircraft to include fixed-winged, rotary-wing, and tilt-rotor aircraft, in addition to UAVs. Pilots selected for assignment at HX-21 must be qualified, highly trained, and possess a wide range of operational experience in rotary and/or tilt-rotar aircraft.

Former test pilots make up a high percentage of astronauts and HX-21 has been home to some notable figures, including Suni Williams, a former helicopter test pilot at HX-21, who went on to become a NASA astronaut. She was assigned to the International Space Station

International Space Station

The International Space Station is a habitable, artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS follows the Salyut, Almaz, Cosmos, Skylab, and Mir space stations, as the 11th space station launched, not including the Genesis I and II prototypes...

 and was a member of Expedition 14

Expedition 14

Expedition 14 was the 14th expedition to the International Space Station . Commander Michael Lopez-Alegria, and flight engineer Mikhail Tyurin launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome on 18 September 2006, 04:09 UTC, aboard Soyuz TMA-9. They joined Thomas Reiter, who had arrived at the ISS on 6 July 2006...

 and Expedition 15

Expedition 15

Expedition 15 was the 15th expedition to the International Space Station . Four crew members participated in the expedition, although for most of the expedition's duration only three were on the station at any one time...

. Suni Williams holds the record for the longest space flight for any female (195 days). Another figure is Mr. Richard "Dick" Wernecke. Mr. Wernecke served the Naval Air Test Center for 34 years as a project engineer, a Department Chief Engineer, and as the first Technical Director of the Rotary Wing Aircraft Test Directorate from 1975-1988.

External links

• http://www.navair.navy.mil/nawcad/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.get_content&key=E399BED3-9D1B-413B-925B-77B14000F8D3&highlight=hx-21
• http://www.navair.navy.mil/USNTPS/about.htm
• http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/williams-s.html
• https://www.cnic.navy.mil/Patuxent/AboutCNIC/NAVAIR/index.htm