Maj Lloyd A. (Al) Edwards was born in 1939 in Jerome, Arizona. He grew up in Prescott, Arizona and graduated from Prescott High School in 1957. In 1962 he received a B.S. Degree in Aeronautics from Arizona State University and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Air Force.

Partial color blindness prevented him from qualifying for pilot training so he began his Air Force career as a maintenance officer on B-52D and KC-135A aircraft at Larson AFB, WA. In 1964 he was assigned to the Foreign Technology Division at Wright-Patterson AFB. Ohio. He then attended the Air Force Institute of Technology and received a B.S. Degree in Aeronautical Engineering in 1969.

He was then assigned as a Flight Test Engineer at the Air Force Flight Test Center, Edwards AFB, CA, where he served as project engineer/officer on numerous flight test programs, the most notable being that of chief engineer for initial performance testing of the F-15A aircraft. He also participated in the flight profile optimization of Project Streak Eagle where the F-15 established eight world time-to-climb records.

While assigned at Edwards AFB he was on flying status as a technical/safety observer, earned the designation Senior Officer Aircrew Member, and flew with 52 different USAF, RAF, and RCAF test pilots in 37 different types, models, and series of aircraft, including TF-15A, F-4 C/D/E, RF-4C, F-104D, TF-102A, F-101B, F-100F, U-2, T-38, T-37, A-37, T-33, O-2, B-52, KC-135, RB-57F, and B-26. He flew to altitudes of 50,000 feet, speeds to 2.1 Mach Number, and load factors of -3g to +7.3g.

In 1975 he was assigned to the Directorate of Plans and Resources at the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center, Kirtland AFB, NM. In 1978 he was assigned as Chief of the Operations Section for the Airborne Laser Laboratory, the nations first airborne high-energy laser weapon demonstrator. He retired from the Air Force in 1982.

In 1985 he joined BDM International as a civilian Flight Test Engineer under contract with the Air Force for Operational Test and Evaluation and Tactics Development of the F-117 Stealth Fighter out of Nellis AFB, NV.

He retired from BDM in 1994 and, as of this writing, is enjoying the good life with Judy, his wife of 53 years at beautiful Lake Powell in northern Arizona.