Paul Newton
NASA Pilot
Paul Newton was a research pilot from 2014 to 2019 at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. He flew science and research aircraft, including the Boeing 747SP Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) flying observatory, as well as the T-34C used by NASA for chase and proficiency and the Gulfstream II and III research platforms.
Newton joined NASA in 2014 following an extensive career in the private aviation sector.
He was a test pilot for the Boeing Company, flying on the 737NG, 777 and 787 production and experimental flight test programs from 2008 through 2014. During this time, Newton also was a Boeing pilot representative for several NASA studies, including the agency’s Next Generation Air Transportation research program.
At Eclipse Aviation in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Newton served as assistant chief production test pilot for the company’s Eclipse 500 aircraft. He held this position from 2006 through 2008. Prior to this, he was a test pilot for Columbia Aircraft in Bend, Oregon, and participated on numerous developmental and production flight tests for the company’s Columbia 350 and 400 single-engine composite aircraft.
From 1998 through 2005, Newton was an airline pilot and director of safety and regulatory compliance for Chicago Express Airlines. He was also a pilot and the executive vice president for North American Jet in Wheeling, Illinois. He has a total of 5,200 flight hours in more than 40 different types of single and multi-engine, turbine, jet and turboprop aircraft. In addition, Newton served seven years as a licensed trial lawyer specializing in aerospace litigation cases.
Newton earned a Bachelor of Science in biology from the University of London, England. He earned a Juris Doctor degree from University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana.
He completed a fixed-wing performance and handling qualities course at the National Test Pilot School in Mojave, California. Newton received an aviation safety certification from the Southern California Safety Institute. He holds a Federal Aviation Administration Airline Transport Pilot certificate and is a flight instructor in single and multi-engine aircraft. He is also a member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots, the Experimental Aircraft Association and the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association.