Brian Binnie

As one of the test pilots for histoic SpaceShipOne, Brian Binnie was an integral part of the first privately-funded human spaceflight.

Born in Indiana in 1953, Binnie spent a substantial portion of his flying career residing in east Kern County.

An alumnus of Brown and Princeton Universities, he served for 20-years in the United States Navy as a naval aviator, graduating from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School in 1988.

In December 2003, Bennie piloted the first powered test flight of SpaceShipOne. In October of 2004, he returned to the SpaceShipOne cockpit and took the craft beyond the barrier of space for the second time within 14 days. Following the flight, Bennie also earned his astronaut wings.

The combined efforts of Binnie and fellow test pilot Mike Melvill helped SpaceShipOne capture the Ansari X Prize, a $10 million award given to the first team to achieve private spaceflight.