Bill Shoemaker

Bill "Doc" Shoemaker is the Chief Test Pilot at Boom Supersonic, a company developing supersonic aircraft.13 He joined Boom five years ago and has made significant contributions to the XB-1 program, Boom's supersonic demonstrator aircraft.1

Shoemaker has an impressive background in aviation:

• Former U.S. naval aviator and graduate of the United States Naval Test Pilot School13
• Holds a doctorate in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Stanford University3
• Has flown over 5,000 flight hours in 50 different aircraft types13
• Completed 900 carrier arrested landings3
• Conducted first flights of several prototype aircraft1

On March 2024, Shoemaker piloted XB-1's first flight, a significant milestone for Boom Supersonic.25 For this achievement, he received the Society of Experimental Test Pilots' Iven C. Kincheloe Award in October 2024.4

At Boom, Shoemaker has been involved in extensive ground and taxi testing of XB-1, including simulator training and maintaining flight proficiency in T-38 and F-5 aircraft.1 He has also flown the F-104, which shares similar flight characteristics with XB-1.1

Shoemaker's expertise as a test pilot includes not only precise flying but also the ability to critically evaluate aircraft performance and communicate effectively about how an aircraft's behavior impacts its mission capabilities.3