  Fundamental big-picture challenges face the enterprise of burgeoning space
test, which may also have an impact on the syllabus and training of a possible
future Space Test Pilot School. Test fundamentals and test conduct under
stresses of time and fuel will be where the rubber meets the road. This paper
specifically discusses four of those challenges, and their impact on US Space
Force operators. (1) Testing limits of space capabilities. Space vehicles have
traditionally imposed very strict operating limits. A culture shift from the
top-down will be required before space testers are allowed to test spacecraft
limits as freely as air-breathing test pilots do today. (2) Permitted
procedures. There are a limited number of contingency procedures at a space
operator's disposal, further constrained within themselves. (3) Safety nets. A
discussion of space-specific methods that mitigate risks in operations, and the
need for more agile fault-detection. (4) Operator proficiency. The
qualifications and recency of a tester at the controls must be considered in
the context of a single misstep potentially resulting in the entire asset being
lost. We suggest that hours in high-risk test per spacecraft may become the
defining factor for high-risk space test execution.
