Fred Cuthill was born on 2 July 1929 and passed away
on 3 October 2013.
He was
a 1960 graduate of the USAF Test Pilot School and held a B.S. Degree in Aeronautical
Engineering from Washington State University
and a Master of Business Administration from George Washington
University. Prior to
attending test pilot school, Fred flew F-86 and F-100 aircraft in fighter
squadrons in the U.S. and Europe. After Test Pilot School, he flew various test
programs on the F-101, F102 and F-106 aircraft.
After
Command and Staff
College he reported to
Edwards AFB and served as test pilot in Special Projects (U-2’s) and later
spent 2 years as Chief of Fighter Test at Edwards. During this period he flew
test programs on the F-4, A-7 and various foreign classified programs. After
one year’s combat in F-4’s in SEA, which included being Commander of the 433
Tactical Fighter Squadron, he returned to Edwards AFB as F-15 Project Director
and was later appointed the F-15 Joint Test Force Director. Fred distinguished
himself by meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight as
chief performance test pilot for a highly classified project at the time,
flying the MiG-21 jet fighter. The data contributed immeasurably to the
understanding of a foreign weapon system; intelligence from a Soviet fighter
that Israel and the United States
would face in battle in the coming years. Fred then moved on to duties as Staff
Assistant to the Director, Test and Evaluation Office of the Secretary of
Defense. He later served as Deputy Commander of an Air Force Fighter Wing.