wannabeastronaut

Another question for a friend. My friend is currently an 62E developmental engineer wanting to backseat F-16s for his next assignment. I know there's a route for engineers to go to TPS and then graduate as a flight test engineer, but I've also heard of 2nd Lt's backseating F-16s at Eglin fresh out of the academy as, if my memory is correct, a "flight test engineer". I might be getting the exact job titles mixed up. Q: What's the job title for engineers who backseat F-16s without graduating TPS and without a Master's?

Restarting this thread with a couple of questions! 1) What are assignments like after graduating TPS? I'm currently flying the EC-130H, so does that mean I would go back to flying heavies or could I get an assignment flying fighter/bomber? 2) If a TSP student comes from a heavy (EC-130H) background, will he/she only fly heavies during TSP or would he/she fly, say, the F-16? 3) It looks like for pilots, master's is not required, but is it necessary for your application to be competitive? 4) Are there any bases besides Eglin and Edwards to which TPS graduates get assigned? Thanks!