RW Test Pilot Path?
Hi there.
I'm currently finishing up my physics degree and am very interested in a future as a RW pilot and maybe even test pilot. I haven't been able to find out that much about it, but here in the US it seems like the vast majority (at least for FW) of test pilots have a military background. What about for RW?
I ask because I don't want to go the military route (I actually did, briefly! I went to the US Air Force Academy but in the end decided it wasn't for me).
Either way, after college I intend on getting my masters in aeronautical engineering or flight test engineering. After that, I want to do my RW training (I already have my FW PPL and IR, so that should speed things up a bit) and fly. And I think I want to fly for at least a good 5-8 years or so before thinking about something else. But eventually I think I would like to do something more technical/academic/engineering-related and that's why I'm ultimately interested in being a test pilot. So I guess I could try to get hired as a FTE and--maybe with all of the RW experience I will have--I'll eventually be eligible to become a TP.
Does this seems like a reasonable path to becoming a test pilot? Would joining the military make things a lot easier for me if this is what I really want to do (while I'm not really interested in the US military anymore, I am a German citizen as well and have thought about joining the German military)?
Thank you for the information!