Albatross Road Trip 2025
Welcome to Our Blog: The Grumman HU-16 Albatross USA Road Trip!
#ITPSAlbatrossTour
Join us as we follow the incredible journey of the iconic Grumman HU-16 Albatross, a legendary amphibious seaplane, on its unforgettable road trip across the United States. The adventure begins with a dramatic takeoff from Oshkosh, Wisconsin, the heart of aviation passion and home to the world-famous EAA AirVenture airshow.
From the shores of the Great Lakes to remote mountain lakes, sunny coastal waters, and everything in between, this classic bird will showcase its unique amphibious capabilities as it lands on both land and water across America.
Buckle up and follow along as we share behind-the-scenes stories, breathtaking photos, and updates from each leg of the journey!
19, August, 2025
Happy National Aviation Day!
On August 19th, we celebrate the history and achievements that continue to shape aviation. As part of our Grumman HU-16 Albatross United States Tour, the International Test Pilots School was pleased to stop in at Airbus Helicopters in Columbus, Mississippi. Around 40–50 Airbus employees came out to see our Grand ’Ole Lady.
A big thank you to Airbus for the warm welcome and hospitality—it was the perfect way to mark National Aviation Day!
11, August, 2025
It had to happen, it was only a matter of when. The Grand Old Lady is having magneto issues and our indefatigable Todd Polcher has been hard at work to resolve the problem! Of all places to break down, the Vintage Flying Museum in Fort Worth was a stroke of luck! We received a warm and enthusiastic welcome and the good folks there could not have been more helpful.
Great evening get-together with the local Society of Flight Test Engineers and the Society of Experimental Test Pilots chapter members. Thank you to Jeffrey Canclini, SFTE President, and old friend James Sergeant for a great social.
09, August, 2025
The Grand Old Lady attracted much interest in Wichita as we dropped in to visit Textron Aviation and Bombardier Flight Test Departments. Friendly welcome and interesting visits were provided by both organisations for the ITPS crew. Wichita is certainly a centre of excellence in flight testing! Very interesting seeing first-hand several prototypes.
Great joint local chapters of Society of Flight Test Engineers and The Society of Experimental Test Pilots social on Thursday evening featuring an interesting and engaging talk on aviation weather. Thanks to Stuart “Chia” Rogerson at Textron and Ben Povall at Bombardier for the great support in arranging our visit.
Onwards to Fort Worth!
06, August, 2025
The ITPS HU-16 visit to Phoenix, AZ was a complete success with the enthusiastic support of the Arizona Chapter of the Society of Flight Test Engineers and Honeywell Flight Test Department. We received a very warm welcome and a tour of their impressive fleet of testbed aircraft. Very impressive.
The first four students enrolled by Honeywell on our Hybrid Flight Test Training Programme coincidentally started the online component today and were later able to participate in a flight to Roosevelt Lake for some general handling and splash-and-gos. A great start to our partnership with Honeywell Flight Test Department. Thank you to SFTE AZ Chapter President Wendy Ng, for helping coordinate the visit and to Doug Rybinsky of Honeywell for his tireless efforts to make our visit happen! Not least thanks to Bill Lee Senior Director of Flight Test Operations for the warm and enthusiastic hospitality!
On to Wichita!
02, August, 2025
The #ITPSAlbatrossTour is headed to Phoenix!
Join the International Test Pilots School on August 4th for a social at the Culinary Dropout. See you at 6:00 pm MST at the 5632 N 7th Street location. Looking forward to catching up with our SFTE and Society of Experimental Test Pilots friends for drinks and networking!
01 August, 2025
Left Las Vegas for an uneventful flight over the Nevada desert, on to Arizona for a very busy SkyHarbour Airport in Phoenix. Safely down and back to business tomorrow early!
31 July, 2025
Our mighty Grumman HU-16 Albatross rumbled out of Seattle, soaring over the Cascade Mountains through Washington, Oregon and Northern California before touching down. After a well-deserved rest in Hollister, the Albatross continued its journey across the San Joaquin Valley, arriving at the Mojave Air & Space Port in the Mojave Desert.
Today, we’re excited to welcome members of the Society of Flight Test Engineers (SFTE) Antelope Valley Chapter and the Society of Experimental Test Pilots (SETP) West Coast Chapter for special events:
Albatross Tour (at Mojave Airport Voyager Restaurant) | 4:00 – 6:00 PM PDT
ITPS Social at Bravery Brewing Co., Lancaster, CA | 7:30 PM PDT
This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for flight testers, warbird enthusiasts, and Albatross fans to step aboard this one-of-a-kind Amphibious Training Laboratory Aircraft System (ATLAS) and explore its glass cockpit and dedicated FTE stations up close.
Don’t miss your chance to experience history and modern innovation — and then flight testers join us for an evening of camaraderie at the social!
31 July, 2025
We wound up our visit to Seattle yesterday, which was an outstanding success thanks to Jennifer Uchida, Thomas Esser and Kevin Welch for the great hospitality and enthusiastic support. Thank you to the Society of Flight Test Engineers Seattle chapter for the warm welcome and social. The Grand Old Lady introduced Boeing test pilots and flight test engineers to water operations off Lake Washington, much enjoyed by all. Thank you to the Museum of Flight for the use of their ramp and friendly and helpful staff. A wonderful museum, well worth the visit! Early morning departure for California!
28 July, 2025
The International Test Pilots School USA tour made its first major stop, Seattle. Our HU-16 made its stately way across the Cascades Mountains and, in sight of Mount Rainier, skimmed the overcast to descend into Puget Sound. The Seattle skyline is an impressive backdrop to our approach into Boeing Field. The Museum of Flight very kindly accommodated us on their ramp. Waiting for us is our friend and former Society of Flight Test Engineers President, Jennifer Uchida, who has been incredibly helpful in making the most of our visit. It’s going to be a good one!
26, July 2025
International Test Pilots School‘s Grand Old Lady crossed the Continental Divide and en route regaled us with stunning views of Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota and Devil’s Tower National Monument in Wyoming, then on, skirting Glacier National Park and on down the Clark Fork river for a splash down at Pende Oreille for an overnight stop at Sandpoint.
Seaplane operations are instructive to test pilots as the airplane’s handling, particularly transitioning from waterborne to airborne, provides rapid changes in workload. Take-off requires active input in three axes whilst in contact with the surface, countering torque effects, and the varying stability off and on the step. Compensating for variable wind conditions and avoiding boat traffic adds to the many challenges!
On to Seattle next!
21 July, 2025
The International Test Pilots School team made it to Oshkosh! Landing on 36R with the ol’girl added some last-minute excitement! (We are sure it’s meant to be a taxiway!?) Great to be back!!!
We departed OSH on the first leg of our US tour, which over the next two weeks includes visits to flight test organisations around the country. Configured as a flying laboratory, our HU-16 is a key asset on the International Test Pilots School fleet.
A big shoutout to our Crew Chief Darrin Ropp, for whom keeping the Grand Old Lady in tip-top shape is a true labour of love. First major stopover is Seattle, keeping our overall schedule flexible and looking for opportunities to make a splashdown wherever possible along the way!
