Early life and education Rushworth was born on October 9, 1924, in
Madison, Maine. He attended
Madison Memorial High School, where he was a class president for four years, graduating in 1942. After attending
Hebron Academy, a
prep school, from which he graduated in June 1943, and joining the
United States Army Air Forces, he studied
mechanical engineering at the
University of Maine, receiving a
Bachelor of Engineering degree in 1951. He also received a
Bachelor of Science degree in
aeronautical engineering from the U.S.
Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) in 1954. In 1967, he graduated from the
National War College in
Washington D.C. Flight experience and military service In September 1944, Rushworth earned his
pilot wings and a
second lieutenant commission following his
aviation cadet training program graduation. His first assignment was with the
12th Combat Cargo Squadron in February 1945, in the
China-Burma-India Theater of Operations, where he flew
C-47 Skytrain transport combat missions from
India throughout the
Burma Campaign and
C-46 Commandos over
the "Hump" in the
Himalaya Mountains to
Shanghai and
Beijing. After five years with the
Reserve and
Air National Guard, during which he received a bachelor's degree from the University of Maine, Rushworth was recalled to active duty in 1951. During
Korean War, Rushworth served as a
F-80C Shooting Star pilot with the
49th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron at
Dow Air Force Base. Following his graduation from the U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology in 1954, Rushworth stayed at
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in
Dayton, Ohio. Among his duties was to serve at the Directorate of Flight and All-Weather Testing. There he specialized in the development and flight testing of experimental automatic flight control systems. He graduated from the
Air Force Experimental Flight Test Pilot School (Class 56C) in 1957, flying
F-101 Voodoos,
F-102 Delta Daggers,
F-104 Starfighters,
F-105 Thunderchiefs,
F-106 Delta Darts and other jet fighters. Rushworth was selected for the X-15 program in 1958. He made his first flight on November 4, 1960. Over the next six years, he made 34 flights in the
X-15, the most of any pilot. This included a flight to an altitude of 285,000 feet, made on June 27, 1963. This flight above 50 miles qualified Rushworth for
Astronaut Wings, though he would have attained that honor sooner had the USAF
Man In Space Soonest project proceeded according to plan. On a later X-15 flight, he was awarded a
Distinguished Flying Cross for successfully landing a
North American X-15 after its nose wheel extended while flying at nearly
Mach 5. He made his final X-15 flight on July 1, 1966, then returned to regular Air Force duties. He attended
F-4 Phantom II Combat Crew Training, went through survival training, and in March 1968 he was sent to
Cam Ranh Bay Air Base,
Republic of Vietnam, where he was assistant deputy commander for operations with the
12th Tactical Fighter Wing and flew 189
combat missions. Following his return from Vietnam, from April 1969 to January 1971, he was program director of the
AGM-65 Maverick program and in February 1971 became commander of the newly organized
4950th Test Wing, Aeronautical Systems Division, at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. Rushworth then served as
inspector general, Air Force Systems Command,
Andrews Air Force Base,
Maryland, from May 1973 to February 1974. He also served as the commander of the
Air Force Flight Test Center at
Edwards Air Force Base,
California, where his responsibilities included the major test programs, including the
F-5,
A-10,
F-15,
YF-16,
YF-17 and
B-1, and as the commander of the Air Force Test and Evaluation Center at
Kirtland Air Force Base,
New Mexico. At the time of his retirement as a
major general, he was vice commander, Aeronautical Systems Division,
Air Force Systems Command, at
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, where he dealt directly with senior deputies and managers and assisted the management of major acquisition programs such as the F-5, A-10, F-15, F-16 and B-1 as well as numerous modernization programs like the
B-52 and
C-5. He held this position since October 1976. Rushworth was a
fellow of the
Society of Experimental Test Pilots (SETP), and in 1975 received the SETP's
James H. Doolittle Award for "outstanding accomplishment in technical management or engineering achievement in aerospace technology". Rushworth retired on June 1, 1981. He was rated a Command Pilot Astronaut and logged over 6,500 flying hours in more than 50 types of
aircraft.
Personal Rushworth married Joyce Butler (1925–1980) in June 1947, and they had one daughter, Cheri (born March 29, 1957). He died of a
heart attack in
Camarillo, California, on March 18, 1993, at the age of 68. He is buried at Forest Hill Cemetery in his hometown Madison, Maine. ==Awards and honors==