Robert Franklyn "Bob" Overmyer (July 14, 1936 – March 22, 1996) was an American test pilot, naval aviator, aeronautical engineer, physicist, United States Marine Corps officer, and USAF/NASA astronaut.

In 1976, he was assigned duties on the space shuttle Approach and Landing Tests (ALT) program and was the prime T-38 Talon chase pilot for Orbiter Free-Flights 1 and 3.

STS-5, the first mission with a four-man crew, clearly demonstrated the shuttle as fully operational by the successful first deployment of two commercial communications satellites from the orbiter's payload bay.

The STS-5 crew successfully concluded the five-day orbital flight of Columbia with the first entry and landing through a cloud deck to a hard-surface runway and demonstrated maximum braking.

He commanded a crew of four astronauts and two payload specialists conducting a broad range of scientific experiments from space physics to the suitability of animal holding facilities.

STS-51-B launched at 12:02 p.m. EDT on April 29, 1985, from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, and landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California, at 9:11 a.m. PDT on May 6, 1985.

In March 1988, he joined the Space Station Team at McDonnell Douglas Aerospace, where he led crew and operations activities for seven years.

He retired from McDonnell Douglas in April 1995 and expanded the scope of Mach Twenty Five International, continuing his aerospace consultation work as well as speaking engagements and writing.

He also performed early certification testing for the Cirrus SR20, which was certified in 1998 and helped pioneer the use of glass cockpits, composite materials and ballistic parachutes in the light production aircraft industry.

[5] He was testing the plane's wing for full-flap stall recovery characteristics at aft center of gravity limits when the aircraft departed controlled flight.

[2] He was awarded the Air Force Meritorious Service Medal in 1969 for duties with the USAF Manned Orbiting Laboratory program; the Marine Corps Meritorious Service Medal in 1978 for duties as the chief chase pilot and support crewman for the Shuttle Approach and Landing Test Program; an Honorary Doctor of Philosophy degree from Baldwin–Wallace College, December 1982; the U.S.