416th Flight Test Squadron The 416th Flight Test Squadron ( 416 FTS ) is a United States Air Force squadron . It is assigned to the 412th Operations Group , Air Force Materiel Command , stationed at Edwards Air Force Base , California . Overview . The 416th FTS performs flight testing on F - 16 Fighting Falcon aircraft . History . World War II . Established in early 1942 as a B - 17 Flying Fortress reconnaissance squadron ; redesignated as a heavy bomb squadron before activation in June . Trained under II Bomber Command in the Pacific Northwest , being deployed with B - 17Es directly to the XII Bomber Command in North Africa shortly after the Operation Torch Landings in March 1943 . In Algeria , the squadron engaged in combat operations in support of American ground forces in Algeria and Tunisia during the 1943 North African campaign . Helped force the capitulation of Pantelleria Island in June 1943 . Bombed in preparation for and in support of the invasions of Sicily and southern Italy in the summer and fall of 1943 . Was reassigned to the new Mediterranean Theater of Operations ( MTO ) Fifteenth Air Force in October 1943 and until the German Capitulation in May 1945 , engaged in strategic bombardment of enemy targets in Italy , France , Germany , Czechoslovakia , Austria , Hungary , Rumania , Bulgaria , Yugoslavia , and Greece , attacking oil refineries , marshaling yards , aircraft factories , and other strategic objectives . After V - E Day , was assigned to Air Transport Command Green Project which was the movement of troops from Italy to staging areas in Morocco . B - 17s were dearmed with flooring and seats for 25 passengers installed . Crew consisted of Pilot , Co - Pilot , Navigator and Flight Engineer . Carried passengers from Tortorella and later from Marcianise Airfields to Port Lyautey Airfield , French Morocco where ATC transports moved them across the Atlantic or to Dakar for movement via South Atlantic Transport Route . Squadron was demoblized in Italy in late 1945 ; inactivated in November . Activated in the reserves in 1947 and possibly assigned some B - 29 Superfortresses , however unit never fully equipped or manned . Inactivated in 1949 due to budget restraints . F - 16 Flight Testing . Reactivated for flight testing of the F - 16 Fighting Falcon in 1989 . after an inactivity of 43 years . The unit inherited the role of the 6516th TS that was also based at Edwards AFB . As the 6516th , the 416th was tasked with testing different weapon systems and specialized equipment on the F - 16 and therefore a number of different blocks were in the inventory , ranging from the early block 1 versions over the block 15 ADF to the later advanced block 50 versions and everything in between . This setup might be seen as a logistical nightmare , but it did provide the squadron a valuable asset in conducting the mission it was set out to perform . Weapons testing forms only a small part of the unit ’ s task . Mostly any weapons testing is conducted together with the Eglin AFB based testing squadrons . Some F - 16s are painted in a regular gray USAF scheme for the purpose of weapons testing . But more exotic colour schemes can be spotted on the Edwards tarmac amongst the resident F - 16s . Mostly they are the famous white birds with the red tails and ventral fins . These aircraft are very often used as so - called chase plane s for other aircraft test programs . A variety of 416th FLTS F - 16s are used to chase F - 22s and F - 35s on regular bases . Therefore these aircraft are also relocated to other airbases all over the country , mostly going to Eglin AFB for testing assistance or to Fort Worth JRB for assistance to the Lockheed F - 35 program . Another role these aircraft are often used for is test pilot training . The 416th FLTS is the only USAF unit to have the permission to train fully qualified test pilots for other USAF programs . Pilots are selected on individual bases and personal skills being able to perform such a demanding task . In the 1990s the 416th helped in the development of the MLU upgrade package for older ( mainly European NATO countries ’ ) F - 16A / B models . The USAF eventually didn ’ t get involved in the production process but did provide test aircraft # 80 - 584 for this purpose . It is still flying with the squadron until this day to test further enhancement packages for both MLU Vipers as for the USAF CCIP program Briefly gained the F - 15 test mission ( 2004 - 2005 ) as the squadron evolved into the " Global Power Fighter CTF " . F - 15 fleet sent to Eglin AFB when the F - 35 Joint Strike Fighters arrived in 2006 . In a rather unusual but beneficial move during early 2009 , the squadron deployed to Nellis AFB , Nevada where the squadron participated in a Red Flag exercise . This was the first of this type of deployment for any Air Force Material Command unit . Red Flag 09 - 2 ran from January 26 to February 6 , 2009 . Reason behind the deployment was to perform some operational testing for the latest operating system M5 . 1 + software which is specific for the F - 16 . The squadron took five aircraft all equipped with this latest software and in the end flew 54 sorties . The success of the first deployment for Red Flag was such that another was organized for deployment from January 23 to February 4 , 2012 . A very similar deployment , this time to test software for the 6 . 1 + operating system . The new software allows several improvements of which the ability to carry the Small Diameter Bomb . This will allow the F - 16 to carry more numerically and deliver this munitions from father away . Although primary deployed to test , the 416th was also a participant with one pilot taking top SEAD pilot . Former members of the 416th FLTS who have been hired by NASA to be astronauts include Mike Bloomfield , Duane Carey , Rex Walheim and Jim Dutton .