For Captain Mark Feuerstein (Chief Pilot, 747) and Captain Tom Imrich (Senior Engineering Test Pilot, 747) the first flight of the 747-8 Freighter is more than just another day in the office. Their countless hours of preparation have helped prepare them for the first flight of the most efficient freighter.

The first flight of the 747-8 is a journey that begins in Everett, Wash., USA. The more than 250-ft-long (76.3-m-long) state-of-the-art airplane begins a nearly year long test program that puts the airplane through its paces. Taking the 747-8 through conditions usually not seen in normal service is something for which Captain Feuerstein and Captain Imrich are prepared. The 747-8 Freighter first flight truly is a big day for a big airplane.

Capt. Mark G. Feuerstein

Chief Pilot 747 Programs

Capt. Mark Feuerstein is chief pilot of 747 programs for The Boeing Company. In this position, Feuerstein is responsible for engineering flight-test activities related to all Boeing 747 airplane models. He is also involved in design activities of the new Boeing 747-8. He was appointed to this role in October 2007.

Feuerstein joined The Boeing Company in 1997. His previous assignments include chief pilot for new airplane product development, assistant chief pilot 747, assistant chief pilot 787, and deputy military and special projects pilot. He has more than 7,000 hours of flight time in over 100 types of airplanes, and holds an FAA type rating in the 707, 737, 747, 747-400, 757, 767, 777, A-320 and A-330 airplanes.

Feuerstein received his bachelor's degree in aeronautical engineering from Purdue University in 1981. In 1987, he graduated from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School as an engineering test pilot. In 1994, he received his Masters of Science in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School.

Feuerstein is an associate fellow in the Society of Experimental Test Pilots and is the Boeing Commercial Airplanes pilot representative to SAE International's Flight Deck and Handling Qualities Standards for Transport Aircraft committee (S-7).

Capt. Thomas Imrich

Engineering Test Pilot, B747 Programs

Capt. Thomas Imrich is a 747 senior engineering project pilot for The Boeing Company. In this position, Imrich is responsible for conducting development and certification flight testing on the 747-8 freighter. He recently served as co-captain for the 747-8 freighter's first flight. He also serves as an engineering test pilot on other current Boeing transport models, and is qualified as a production test pilot for both the Next Generation 737 and 777.

Imrich previously served as Boeing's chief research test pilot. He has supported numerous flight test development and certification efforts for the Global Positioning Landing System, required navigation performance and data link, as well as major flight test efforts for the Next Generation 737, 777, and 747, including the 747-400 Large Cargo Freighter, which is now used to carry component parts for 787 assembly.

Before joining Boeing in 2001, Imrich held a variety of management and technical positions at the FAA, including serving as the FAA's national resource specialist for air carrier operations. In those positions he worked with the operational introduction of various large-transport aircraft, including the MD-80, 757, 767, 737-300/-400/-500, 747-400, MD-11, 737-600/-700/-800, 777, A330 and A340. While at the FAA, he formulated FAA or international policies for all-weather operations, Operational Performance Category III, the Global Positioning Landing System, required navigational performance, heads-up displays, the Future Air Navigation System, data links, collision avoidance, wind shear and crew qualifications. He also served on numerous panels, task forces and committees related to the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics, the International Civil Aviation Organization and the Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee.

Imrich completed his undergraduate and graduate studies in aeronautics and astronautics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He served as an active duty officer in the U.S. Air Force. Imrich holds several patents and has been recognized with numerous awards, including several Aviation Week Laurels and the Flight Safety Foundation's Admiral deFlorez Award. He is a member of American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Sigma Xi and the Society of Experimental Test Pilots.

Capt. Kirk Vining

Engineering Test Pilot, B747 Programs

Capt. Kirk Vining is a 747 engineering project pilot for The Boeing Company. In this position, Vining is responsible for engineering flight test activities on RC 522, the third 747-8 airplane. Vining joined Boeing in 2005 as a production test pilot.

Before joining Boeing, Vining managed Bombardier's Tucson Completion Center Flight Test Department. He has held delegated authority from the FAA as a designated engineering representative and airworthiness representative.

Vining holds a bachelor's degree in aeronautical engineering from Wichita State University and a master's degree in systems architecture and engineering from the University of Southern California. In 2008, he published a technical paper on organizational structures at the Counsel on Systems Engineering Research, Los Angeles, Calif. Vining is a member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots.

Capt. Paul Stemer

Engineering Test Pilot, B747 Programs

Capt. Paul Stemer is an engineering test pilot for The Boeing Company. In this position, Stemer is responsible for overseeing 747-8 design, development and certification efforts and also is the lead test pilot on RC521, the second 747-8 airplane to enter testing. Flight tests on RC521 assess airplane fuel performance as well as validate and certify the propulsion system, flight into known icing conditions, autoflight, autoland and airplane systems.

Before his current assignment, Stemer served as production test pilot for Flight Test, as project pilot for Connexion by Boeing, and as a research pilot for Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

In 1995 Stemer left Boeing for Lauda Air in Vienna, Austria, to support the introduction of the 777 in Europe. There, as chief technical pilot, he was responsible for airplane configuration, performance and reliability, and technical matters for the entire Lauda Air fleet, including the 737, 767, 777 and Canadair regional jets. He returned to Boeing in 2000.

Stemer originally joined Boeing in 1989 as a flight deck crew operations engineer, where he contributed to flight deck design and development. Later, as test operations engineer, he contributed to the validation and final certification of the 777.

Stemer graduated with honors from The Technical University in Munich, Germany, earning his master's degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering. He has over 9,500 hours of flight time and holds U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) type ratings in 737, 747-400, 757, 767, 777, and a letter of authorization for 787 airplanes. He also is an FAA-designated engineering representative and supports the Boeing Delegated Compliance Organization as an advisor to his fellow pilot airworthiness representatives.