Awarded to an individual under the age of 30 for outstanding achievement and endeavour in any field of aviation.
First Lieutenant Andrew Merkley is currently serving as the United States Air Force Materiel Command Lead Test Engineer for the 661st Aeronautical Systems Squadron, a combined acquisition, ground, and flight test unit in Englewood, Colorado. In this capacity he led a team of 40 personnel in test, executing seven separate special mission programmes, to include the development of a new United States Special Operations Command air-launched, unmanned aerial system on a classified platform, enabling successful all-weather targeting capabilities.
Lt Merkley played a crucial role in flight testing a new $42m engine, multiple propellers, and an upgraded lithium-ion aircraft battery for the U-28 airframe, directly expanding the capabilities of this vital Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) asset, while also addressing airframe viability and life extension. Additionally, in recognition of his test experience and expertise, he was the lead test engineer for a $1.6B dollar hypersonic missile program test series overseen by the Office of the Secretary of Defense. He wrote the developmental test plan for weapon system evaluation, injecting relevance for three flight tests.
Lt Merkley directed ground and flight testing of a $585k ISR radar system upgrade on a low-density United States Southern Command counter-drug asset, thereby facilitating narcotics seizures valued at $2.4B, which was an impressive 9% increase from the previous calendar year. Moreover, he was vital to next-generation airborne sensor development, integrated testing, and operations by enabling the continued development of a $100m sensor testbed platform. He validated the pre-modification aircraft performance data for subsequent Federal Aviation Administration certification in a 31-sortie, 299-test-point, medium-risk test programme.
Utilising his skills from the Test Management Course, he managed the live-fire test and evaluation of an upgraded Stand-Off Precision Guided Munition. His efforts facilitated the first-ever post-launch fusing update via the Situation Awareness Data Link, boosting weapon lethality. Finally, Lt Merkley planned and executed the simultaneous flight testing of six unique alternate positioning, navigation, and timing systems in a week-long, large force test event. He personally executed six sorties totalling 24 flight hours in a real-world global positioning system-denied environment, providing programme managers with actual system performance data. Simply put, Lt Merkley has exceeded all expectations and has made an exceptional contribution to the ‘Big Safari’ flight test mission. He is highly deserving of recognition for an outstanding contribution to flight operations by the award of the Grand Master’s Medal.
1962/63 M P Glegg Esq
1963/64 D A Martin Esq
196465 T A Henderson Esq
1965/66 P G Hadgett Esq
196667 J W D Robertson Esq
196768 R J Barbour Esq
1968/69 A J E Tiley Esq
1969/70 C Redrupp Esq
1970/71 R G P Taylor Esq
1971/72 D Smethurst Esq
1972/73 G G Leask Esq
1973/74 J F Rothwell Esq
1974/75 G J Bressey Esq
1975/76 J F Nash Esq
1976/77 M J Thrower Esq
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1992/93 M D W Bowker Esq
1993/94 R Ka Fuk Cheung Esq
1994/95 W S Gilmour Esq
1995/96 Jamal Jamal Mohammed Jamal
1996/97 Matthew J Clatworthy Esq
1997/98 Emma Joanne Phelps
1998/99 Captain W I E Anderson
1999/2000 Pilot Ofiicer J S Clayton
2000/01 Nicholas Chan
2001/02 Flt Lt Nicola Thomas
2002/03 Daniel Fonseca MEng (Hons) GradRAeS
2003/04 Philip Gareth Donovan
2004/05 Peter Charles Edward Nye
2006 - 2010 not awarded
2010/11 awarded twice:
Isabelle de Montet-Guerin
Capt Robert Shoenberg USAF
2012 - 2014 not awarded
2014/15 Flt Lt Christopher Gonzalez RAF
2016 Flt Lt Colin Bostrom MSc RAF
2017 Captain Matthew A Shipp USAF
2018 Captain Alexander Horrell USAF
2019 Aaron Keith Pearce
2020 TSgt Zane Romick USAF
2021 Flt Lt Ryan Stowe RAF
2022 Travis Ludlow
2023 First Lieutenant Andrew H Merkley USAF
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