My Granddad past away last week and his services were this weekend. He was a truly a member of the "Greatest Generation." He served in WWII, lost a leg, and has a purple heart from his service. He never let this injury hold him back and I wanted to share a BIO of his life seen below. This was just written as he is nominated this year for the LSU- Hall of Distinction. He was a very humble man who never boasted about his accomplishments but as you can see below he took full advantage of life. Through all his professional accomplishments he was still able to keep his family number 1.
Just thought I would share this bio of his life with the group and celebrate my Granddad! (I replaced his name with X as not to put his name out there).
Mr. X Jr., is a pioneer in the fields of hypersonic and supersonic flight science, and led the development of some of the world’s most advanced aircraft.
In the 1950s and 1960s at the Fort Worth Division of Convair, Mr. X was involved in several early, highly classified hypersonic aircraft design studies that pushed aerodynamic performance to new levels. Among those projects was the top-secret Super Hustler, for which Mr. X served as propulsion-systems lead. Super Hustler was envisioned as a high-altitude, Mach 4-capable stealthy reconnaissance aircraft designed to penetrate Soviet airspace at the height of the Cold War.
In the 1960s and 1970s at General Dynamics Fort Worth Aircraft Division, Mr. X was a member of the core design team that produced the F-16 Fighting Falcon (also known as Viper), a revolutionary, lightweight supersonic jet that became the principal frontline fighter of the U.S. Air Force. Mr. X served as Vice President of F-16 Engineering and Director of Flight Test, and was Vice President and Program Director of the F-16XL project. More than 30 years after its introduction, the F-16 continues to be the Air Force’s frontline fighter, and is in service with the air forces of more than 20 nations. With more than 4,500 produced, the F-16 is the world’s most successful modern fighter. It remains in production.
In the 1980s and 1990s, Mr. X led the General Dynamics team in the Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program that ultimately produced the F-22 Raptor, the world’s most advanced fighter aircraft. As Division Vice President and Program Director, he spearheaded the design of a Mach 2+ stealth fighter with extreme maneuverability that could travel at supersonic speed without the use of fuel-gulping afterburners – a technical breakthrough on several fronts. General Dynamics Fort Worth Aircraft Division soon teamed with Lockheed (the two companies later merged) to produce the YF-22 prototype, which beat a rival design for the ATF contract. The resulting F-22 now serves as the U.S. Air Force’s top air-dominance fighter.
Mr. X also had important engineering roles on the B-36 Peacemaker, the world’s first intercontinental bomber; the B-58 Hustler, the world’s first supersonic bomber; and the F-111 and F/B-111 Aardvark, a supersonic fighter-bomber with variable-sweep wings.
Mr. X is a World War II veteran and Purple Heart recipient. In 1987 he became a member of the Louisiana State University Mechanical Engineering Department’s Advisory Board.
Other memberships and professional recognitions include:
• Lockheed Martin Hall of Fame
• Tau Beta Pi Professional Engineering Society
• Phi Sigma Tau National Honor Society for Philosophy
• American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (member)
• Advisory Board Member, University of Tennessee Research Center
• Collier Trophy Award winner for Achievement in Aircraft design as a member of the YF-16 design team
• Associate Fellow, American Institute of Astronautics and Aeronautics
• Institute for the Advancement of Engineering – Engineering Project Team Award for the F-22 Advanced Tactical Fighter
• American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Aircraft Design Award for the F-22 Advanced Tactical Fighter
• Air Force Association (member)
• Who’s Who in Aviation and Aerospace
• Byrd High School (Shreveport, Louisiana) Alumni Hall of Fame.
• Fort Worth Business Press Mentor Award
He retired from General Dynamics in 1991.
Mr. X served on the Quicksilver Resources Board of Directors, the vestry of All Saints’ Episcopal Church, and was an ex-officio member of the All Saints’ Parish Day School Board of Trustees
He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Louisiana State University (1947), and a Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University (1949). He resides in Texas and is married to Ann (LSU, BA 1947). They have three sons, six grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
Just thought I would share this bio of his life with the group and celebrate my Granddad! (I replaced his name with X as not to put his name out there).
Mr. X Jr., is a pioneer in the fields of hypersonic and supersonic flight science, and led the development of some of the world’s most advanced aircraft.
In the 1950s and 1960s at the Fort Worth Division of Convair, Mr. X was involved in several early, highly classified hypersonic aircraft design studies that pushed aerodynamic performance to new levels. Among those projects was the top-secret Super Hustler, for which Mr. X served as propulsion-systems lead. Super Hustler was envisioned as a high-altitude, Mach 4-capable stealthy reconnaissance aircraft designed to penetrate Soviet airspace at the height of the Cold War.
In the 1960s and 1970s at General Dynamics Fort Worth Aircraft Division, Mr. X was a member of the core design team that produced the F-16 Fighting Falcon (also known as Viper), a revolutionary, lightweight supersonic jet that became the principal frontline fighter of the U.S. Air Force. Mr. X served as Vice President of F-16 Engineering and Director of Flight Test, and was Vice President and Program Director of the F-16XL project. More than 30 years after its introduction, the F-16 continues to be the Air Force’s frontline fighter, and is in service with the air forces of more than 20 nations. With more than 4,500 produced, the F-16 is the world’s most successful modern fighter. It remains in production.
In the 1980s and 1990s, Mr. X led the General Dynamics team in the Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program that ultimately produced the F-22 Raptor, the world’s most advanced fighter aircraft. As Division Vice President and Program Director, he spearheaded the design of a Mach 2+ stealth fighter with extreme maneuverability that could travel at supersonic speed without the use of fuel-gulping afterburners – a technical breakthrough on several fronts. General Dynamics Fort Worth Aircraft Division soon teamed with Lockheed (the two companies later merged) to produce the YF-22 prototype, which beat a rival design for the ATF contract. The resulting F-22 now serves as the U.S. Air Force’s top air-dominance fighter.
Mr. X also had important engineering roles on the B-36 Peacemaker, the world’s first intercontinental bomber; the B-58 Hustler, the world’s first supersonic bomber; and the F-111 and F/B-111 Aardvark, a supersonic fighter-bomber with variable-sweep wings.
Mr. X is a World War II veteran and Purple Heart recipient. In 1987 he became a member of the Louisiana State University Mechanical Engineering Department’s Advisory Board.
Other memberships and professional recognitions include:
• Lockheed Martin Hall of Fame
• Tau Beta Pi Professional Engineering Society
• Phi Sigma Tau National Honor Society for Philosophy
• American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (member)
• Advisory Board Member, University of Tennessee Research Center
• Collier Trophy Award winner for Achievement in Aircraft design as a member of the YF-16 design team
• Associate Fellow, American Institute of Astronautics and Aeronautics
• Institute for the Advancement of Engineering – Engineering Project Team Award for the F-22 Advanced Tactical Fighter
• American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Aircraft Design Award for the F-22 Advanced Tactical Fighter
• Air Force Association (member)
• Who’s Who in Aviation and Aerospace
• Byrd High School (Shreveport, Louisiana) Alumni Hall of Fame.
• Fort Worth Business Press Mentor Award
He retired from General Dynamics in 1991.
Mr. X served on the Quicksilver Resources Board of Directors, the vestry of All Saints’ Episcopal Church, and was an ex-officio member of the All Saints’ Parish Day School Board of Trustees
He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Louisiana State University (1947), and a Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University (1949). He resides in Texas and is married to Ann (LSU, BA 1947). They have three sons, six grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
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