ADDISON THOMPSON III
PAST PRESIDENT, SOCIETY OF EXPERIMENTAL TEST PILOTS
Mr. Thompson received his BS degree from the U.S. Air Force Academy and later completed graduate studies in Aeronautical Engineering at Ohio State and California State Universities. He was a Distinguished Graduate of the U.S. Air Command and Staff College and a Graduate of the USAF Aerospace Research Pilot School at Edwards AFB. He is a USAF Command Pilot and FAA Commercial Pilot with over 10,000 hours in over fifty different aircraft types.
During a 20-year military career, Mr. Thompson was assigned to Air Defense Command, Air Training Command, Tactical Air Command and Pacific Air Forces (combat tour) prior to attending USAF Aerospace Research Pilot School in 1972. He flew over 100 tactical combat missions with the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing during the Vietnam War. In addition to Instructor, Combat and Test Pilot experience, his military experience included jobs as Commander of Detachment 1 of the Air Force Flight Test Center, Director of Operations and Programs for the Air Force Flight Test Center and Test Director of several USAF test programs. His military decorations include, among others, two Distinguished Flying Crosses, three Meritorious Service Medals and seven Air Medals.
After leaving the Air Force, Mr. Thompson began a 20-year career in civilian industry. He worked for Tracor Flight Systems, Inc. as a test pilot on several programs, as the Deputy Director of Military Programs and as the Program Manager of the USAF QF-100 drone production program. In 1985, he left Tracor to work for Rockwell International Corporation (later The Boeing Company following a merger) as Chief B-1B Test Pilot. He also worked at RI as a test pilot on several other leading edge programs such as the X-30 Aerospace Plane program and classified research projects. He was later named Director of Flight Operations and Chief Test Pilot for the company. His last assignment was as the Test Director for the X-32 Joint Strike Fighter flight test program. He retired from The Boeing Company in 2001.
Mr. Thompson is a Fellow of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots and has been a member of SETP for fifty years. He served on the Board of Directors and as the President of the Society. He was awarded the 1989 Iven C. Kincheloe Award for high AOA hazardous flight testing of the B-1B. He has also served as a Trustee and Chairman of the SETP Scholarship Foundation.
He was an early member of the Board of Directors of the Flight Test Historical Foundation and, as a member of the founding Task Force for the City of Palmdale Memorial Air Park, was instrumental in the origination of a major display of aircraft and artifacts commemorating the history of USAF Plant 42 at Palmdale, CA.
Mr. Thompson currently lives in Santa Barbara, CA where he has served as the Chairman of the Airport Commission and member and Chairman of the city Planning Commissioner.
