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Siebold, Pete

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Siebold

Born: 1971.

Educated Cal Poly.

SCALED COMPOSITES OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY (June 2004)

Peter Siebold is an Aeronautical Engineer, Experimental Test Pilot, and Flight Test Engineer at Scaled Composites, LLC. Pete holds a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering from California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo and has been working at Scaled since 1996. Pete is a Design Engineer specializing in Avionics and Data Acquisition Design and Development. He was responsible for the development of the Simulator, Avionics/Navigation System, and Ground Control System for the SpaceShipOne Program.

Flight Experience:

• 17 years of flight experience
• 2000 hours in 35 different fixed wing aircraft
• Holds FAA Commercial ASEL, AMEL, Commercial Glider, instrument airplane certificates
• Holds FAA Flight Instructor ASEL, AMEL, instrument airplane certificates
• Member of the Aircraft Owners' and Pilots' Association
• Member of Experimental Aircraft Association
• Associate Member of The Society of Experimental Test Pilots
• Participated in the flight testing of the following:
• VisionAire Vantage Model 247 prototype
• Proteus Model 281 prototype
• Adam Model 309 prototype
• Toyota TAA-1 prototype
• Scaled Model 318 White Knight
• Scaled Model 316 SpaceShipOne

• White Knight Flight 1 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Shane, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Flight Time: 0.2 hours Pilot: Shane Copilot: Siebold. Objectives: First flight. Handling qualities assessment and basic performance evaluation. Systems evaluation. Cabin un-pressurized. Results: Un-commanded hammering auxiliary spoiler deployments after takeoff. Flight aborted to downwind for an uneventful landing. No apparent flying qualities issues noted. Auxiliary spoilers were disabled for future flights.

• White Knight Flight 2 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Shane, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Flight Time: 1.5 hours Pilot: Shane Copilot: Siebold. Objectives: First flight test card repeat. Flying qualities assessment and basic performance evaluation. Avionics and pneumatic systems evaluation. Cabin un-pressurized. Results: Envelope expansion to 15,000 feet and 140 knots. Overall satisfactory stability, good control harmony and impressive performance. Heavy airframe buffet at high speeds with both sets of speed brakes deployed. "Best airplane the company has ever built"

• White Knight Flight 4 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Shane, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Flight Time: 2.5 hours Pilot: Siebold Copilot: Shane. Objectives: New pilot qual eval. Envelope expansion out to 35,000 feet and 150 knots / 0.4M and 3 G's. Engine relight performance. Avionics software upgrade. Results: Experienced a rudder dead-band (poor centering) at the higher altitudes. Dihedral effect is neutral at higher speeds. Window fogging on descent. Numerous flight director attitude display resets.

• White Knight Flight 10 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Flight Time: 1.1 hours Pilot: Siebold Copilot: Binnie. Objectives: SpaceshipOne boost profile and steering capture practice. Simulated SS1 glide approaches. Results: SS1 simulation good up to at least ~ 70 degree flight path angle..

• White Knight Flight 9 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Flight Time: 2.2 hours Pilot: Binnie Copilot: Siebold. Objectives: Boost phase pilot training. Formation flying and air-to-air photography with the Proteus aircraft. Results: Adequate visibility and satisfactory flying qualities for formation flying. A photo from this flight later appeared on the cover of Aviation Week (21Apr03 issue).

• White Knight Flight 13 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Flight Time: 0.3 hours Pilot: Binnie Copilot: Siebold. Objectives: FAA-monitored flight for pilot "Type Rating". Results: Rating issued.

• White Knight Flight 14 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Shane, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Flight Time: 0.3 hours Pilot: Siebold Copilot: Shane. Objectives: FAA-monitored flight for pilot "Type Rating". Results: Rating issued.

• White Knight Flight 15 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Flight Time: 2.4 hours Pilot: Siebold Copilot: Binnie. Objectives: Continued engine, ECS and avionics evaluation. High-rate nose wheel steering assessment. Results: Difficulty maintaining afterburner on left engine near 50,000 feet. Improved ECS configuration showed improved resistance to fogging. Nose wheel steering gearing change about the same.

• White Knight Flight 16 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Flight Time: 2.0 hours Pilot: Binnie Copilot: Siebold. Objectives: Continued engine, ECS and avionics evaluation. Simulated wheel brake failure landing rollout. Results: Conclusion: aircraft can be landed at MHV if a wheel brake fails. More engine irregularities at high altitude. Engines removed and sent to test cell for fuel control calibration and adjustments.

• White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 24C / 01C - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Apogee: 14 km (8 mi).

  Objectives: First captive carry flight with mated White Knight and SpaceShipOne. Vibration and aerodynamic interface assessment. Mated handling qualities evaluation. Envelope expansion to 130 knots / Mach 0.5 above 45,000 feet. Stalls and 2/3-rudder sideslips. SpaceShipOne systems inactive, controls locked and cabin unmanned. Launch system was qualified and functional for this flight. Additional Details: here....

• White Knight Flight 25 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Flight Time: 2.2 hours Pilot: Binnie Copilot: Siebold. Objectives: First glide flight profile rehearsal / two ship checklist flow / airspace coordination / Command and Control responsibilities and handoffs. Results: Good exercise of all involved parties and agencies including the Edwards air Force Base, Joshua Control and Scaled Composites, Utility Mobile ground station.

• White Knight Flight 27 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Flight Time: 0.7 hours Pilot: Binnie Copilot: Siebold Flight Engineer: Stinemetze. Objectives: Pilot proficiency. First flight for SpaceShipOne lead engineer. Results: Made several simulated captive carry low sink rate landings as well as practice SpaceshipOne approaches to various runways. Good exposure for Matt Stinemetze on cockpit workload / crew coordination / cabin environment and human factors for Tier-1 mission

• White Knight Flight 28 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Flight Time: 0.5 hours Pilot: Siebold Copilot: Binnie Flight Engineer: Losey. Objectives: Pilot proficiency. First flight for SpaceShipOne crew chief. Results: Made several practice SpaceshipOne approaches using various configurations and runways. Good exposure for SS1 crewchief Steve Losey on cockpit workload / crew coordination / cabin environment and human factors for Tier-1 mission.

• White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 32L / 05G - . Crew: Melvill. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Melvill, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Objectives: Same objectives as the aborted flight 31LC/04GC earlier today. Second glide flight of SpaceShipOne. Flying qualities and performance in the space ship re-entry or "feather" mode. Pilot workload and situational awareness while transitioning and handling qualities assessment when reconfigured. As a glider, stall investigation both at high and low altitude and envelope expansion out to 200 kts and 4 G's. More aggressive, lateral directional characteristics including adverse yaw, roll rate effectiveness and control, including 360 degree aileron roll, and full rudder side slips. Additional Details: here....

• White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 31LC /04GC - . Crew: Melvill. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Melvill, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Apogee: 14 km (8 mi).

  Objectives: Second glide flight of SpaceShipOne. Flying qualities and performance in the space ship feather mode. Pilot workload and situational awareness while transitioning and handling qualities assessment when reconfigured. As a glider, deep stall investigation both at high and low altitude and envelope expansion out to 200 kts and 4 G's. Lateral directional characteristics including adverse yaw, roll rate effectiveness and control including aileron roll and full rudder side slips. Results: The flight was aborted about 20 minutes before launch, after a GPS navigation malfunction occurred in the SpaceShip avionics system. The mated pair continued to test other systems including Spaceship fuselage heating, then returned for a mated landing.

  Flight Time: 1.1 hours White Knight Pilot: Binnie Copilot: Bird SpaceShipOne Pilot: Melvill High Chase-Starship Pilot: Siebold Low Chase-Duchess Pilot: Karkow

• White Knight Flight 35 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Flight Time: 2.1 hours. White Knight Pilot: Siebold. White Knight Copilot: Binnie White Knight Flt Engineer: Nichols. Objectives: SpaceShipOne approach and landing profile review Results: Evaluated a variety of different profiles to assess ease of set-up, forgiveness to off normal starts and pilot situation awareness during the approach.

• White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 37L / 06G - . Crew: Melvill. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Melvill, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Apogee: 14 km (8 mi).

  Objectives: Third glide flight of SpaceShipOne. Aft CG flying qualities and performance evaluation of the space ship in both the glide and re-entry or "feather" mode. Glide envelope expansion to 95% airspeed, 100% alpha and beta and 70% loadfactor. More aggressive post stall maneuvering and spin control as a glider and while feathered. Nitrous temperature control during climb to altitude and performance of upgraded landing gear extension mechanism and space-worthy gear doors. Additional Details: here....

• White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 38L/07G - . Crew: Melvill. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Melvill, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Objectives: Fourth glide flight of SpaceShipOne. Primary purpose was to examine the effects of horizontal tail modifications at both forward and mid-range CG locations (obtained by dumping water from an aft ballast tank between test points). The tail modifications included a fixed strake bonded to the tail boom in front of the stabilator and a span-wise flow fence mounted on the leading edge of each stab at mid-span. Additional Details: here....

• White Knight Flight 39 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Flight Time: 1.5 hours. White Knight Pilot: Siebold. White Knight Copilot: Binnie. Objectives: Avionics upgrade evaluation and landing pattern practice. Results: Satisfactory GPS-aided INS stability and position keeping through a normal launch and glide flight profile. Flight 36

• White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 40L/08G - . Crew: Siebold. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Melvill, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Objectives: The fifth glide flight of SpaceShipOne. New pilot checkout flight. Stability and control testing with the new extended horizontal tails. Tests included stall performance at aft limit CG and evaluation of the increased pitch and roll control authority. Other objectives included additional testing of the motor controller (MCS) and handling qualities in feathered flight. Results: Launch conditions were 47,300 feet and 115 knots. Satisfactory stability and control at aft limit CG. A notable improvement in control power, particularly in roll. Handling qualities into and out of feather remained excellent with good nose pointing ability. Adjusted landing pattern altitudes resulted in a touchdown at the targeted runway aim-point.

  Flight Time: 1.4 hours / 19 mins 55 secs White Knight Pilot: Binnie White Knight Copilot: Stinemetze White Knight Flt Engineer: SpaceShipOne Pilot: Siebold High Chase-Starship Pilot: Karkow Low Chase-Duchess Pilot: Melvill/ Coleman

• White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 41L/09G - . Crew: Melvill. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Melvill, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Objectives: The sixth glide flight of SpaceShipOne. Test pilot Mike Melvill's first flight with the enlarged tails. Emergency aft CG handling qualities eval and simulated landing exercise with the new tail configuration. Airspeed and G envelop expansion and dynamic feather evaluation. Additional Details: here....

• White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 42L / 10g - . Crew: Binnie. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Melvill, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One.

  Objectives: The seventh glide flight of SpaceShipOne and new pilot check out. Full functional check of the propulsion system by cold flowing nitrous oxide. Completed airspeed and positive and negative G-envelope expansion. Results: Launch conditions were 48,400 feet and 115 knots. All propulsion components, displays and functionality performed as designed. The feather was extended after a 4G pull-up to the vertical at 24,500 feet and rudder used to induce sideslip and yaw rates while "going-over-the-top". The vehicle recovered to a stable attitude and descent after only a single oscillation. The landing pattern was flown following established procedures resulting in a satisfactory touchdown.

  Flight Time: 1.3 hours / 13 mins 14 secs White Knight Pilot: Siebold White Knight Copilot: Stinemetz White Knight Flt Engineer: SpaceShipOne Pilot: Binnie High Chase-Starship Pilot: Karkow Low Chase-Extra Pilot: Melvill / Coleman

• SpaceShipOne powered flight 1 - . Crew: Binnie. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Melvill, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Duration: 0.0126 days. Apogee: 21 km (13 mi).

  White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 43L / 11P. Eighth flight of SpaceShipOne and first powered flight. 15 second burn of the rocket motor and supersonic flight. Motor light off at altitude and inflight engine performance. Vehicle handling qualities through transonics and feather performance from altitude. Launch conditions were 14.6 km and 207 kph. Motor light off was achieved at 13.5 km and 0.55M. Burnout occurred at 1.2M and apogee was 20.7 km. There was no noted flight control flutter or buzz during the climb. Feather recovery exhibited a +/-30 roll initially and then settled down into the familiar falling bathtub mode. The wing was de-feathered and locked by 10.6 km. A nominal landing pattern was flown but touchdown caused the left main gear to collapse and the vehicle rolled to a stop off the runway in the soft sand. Although the damage was not major, repairs were expected to take approximately three weeks to complete.

• White Knight Flight 45 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Flight Time: 1.6 Hours. White Knight Pilot: Siebold. White Knight Copilot: Binnie. Objectives: Pilot proficiency, new software build checkout and landing practice.

• White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 49L / 12G - . Crew: Siebold. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Melvill, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Apogee: 14 km (8 mi).

  Objectives: The twelfth flight of SpaceShipOne. Objectives included: pilot proficiency, reaction control system functionality check and stability and control and performance of the vehicle with the airframe thermal protection system installed. This was an unpowered glide test. Results: Launch conditions were 48,500 feet and 125 knots. All systems performed as expected and the vehicle landed successfully while demonstrating the maximum cross wind landing capability.

  Flight Time: 1.3 hours / 18 mins 30 secs White Knight Pilot: Binnie White Knight Copilot: Stinemetze White Knight Flt Engineer: SpaceShipOne Pilot: Siebold High Chase-Starship Pilot: Karkow Low Chase-Extra Pilot: Melvill / Coleman

• White Knight Flight 52 - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Siebold. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Flight Time: 2.0 hours. White Knight Pilot: Siebold. White Knight Copilot: Karkow. Objectives: Avionics checkout flight, pilot proficiency and landing practice..

• SpaceShipOne Flight 13P - . Crew: Siebold. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Melvill, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Duration: 0.0114 days. Apogee: 32 km (19 mi).

  White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 53L / 13P. 40 second motor burn time. Handling qualities during boost, through transonic and supersonic. Reaction control system functionality in-flight and feather configuration stability during transonic re-entry. Evaluation of radar tracking capability. Launch conditions were 13.96 km and 230 kph. A planned immediate motor ignition was delayed about 2 minutes to evaluate a shock induced stall buffet resulting in an ignition altitude of only 11.7 km. The 40 second rocket boost was smooth with good control. Pilot commented that the motor was surprisingly quiet; however the boost was heard by ground observers. Burnout occurred at 1.6M and apogee was over 32 km. There was no noted flight control flutter or buzz during the climb. Feather recovery was nominal. Maximum feathered speed on entry was 0.9 Mach. The wing was de-feathered and locked by 12 km. Handling quality assessments during descent were satisfactory and a smooth landing made to runway 30 at Mojave. All video and tracking systems performed well with spectacular footage obtained onboard, from chase and from ground stations.

• SpaceShipOne Flight 14P - . Crew: Melvill. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Binnie, Melvill, Siebold. Agency: Scaled. Program: X-Prize. Spacecraft Bus: SpaceShip. Spacecraft: Spaceship One. Duration: 0.0144 days. Apogee: 65 km (40 mi).

  White Knight/SpaceShipOne Flight 56L / 14P. 55 second motor burn time. Handling qualities during boost and performance verification. Reaction control system use for reorientation to entry attitude. Supersonic feather stability and control. Launch conditions were 14 km and 220 kph. Motor light off occurred 10 seconds after release and the vehicle boosted smoothly to 46 km and Mach 2.5. Subsequent coast to apogee of 64.5 km. During a portion of the boost, the flight director display was inoperative, however the pilot continued the planned trajectory referencing the external horizon. Reaction control authority was as predicted and the vehicle recovered in feather experiencing 1.9M and 3.5G's. Feather oscillations were actively damped by the pilot and the wing was de-feathered starting at 17 km. The onboard avionics was re-booted and a smooth and uneventful landing made to Mojave.

• Spaceship Two PF04 - . Crew: Alsbury, Siebold. Nation: USA. Spacecraft Bus: Spaceship. Spacecraft: SpaceShip Two. Apogee: 16 km (9 mi).

  The Spaceship Two S/N 01 'VSS Enterprise' rocket-powered glider was dropped from the White Knight 2 carrier aircraft, based at Mojave Spaceport in California, and was intended for passenger suborbital flights to be operated by Virgin Galactic. The vehicle had made 12 captive flights, 32 glide flights, and 3 rocket-powered flights prior to the accident. The glide flights had been piloted by a mixture of Scaled Composites and Virgin Galactic test pilots. Only short rocket burns had been made and the highest apogee was only 22 km. On October 31, flight PF04 made a short rocket burn of 9 seconds, at which point the co-pilot unlocked the rotating tail booms, apparently by mistake; these were not intended to be deployed at the then speed of around Mach 1.0 during rocket-powered flight. The unlocked booms then accidentally deployed ('feathered'), followed by disintegration of the vehicle. The debris fell near Koehn Lake in California, about 40 km NE of the takeoff airport at Mojave. Pilot Pete Siebold parachuted to safety and was hospitalized with serious injuries; co-pilot Mike Alsbury was killed in the crash. The second SS Two, S/N 02 'VSS Voyager', was still under construction at Mojave.