Bob Patterson

1. Retired? What %? 1. 100 %
2. Have you downsized? 2. No, kids are married & live in the area. Need to, however. 35 years in the same house!
3. How many different homes since finishing school? 3. Too many-military life
4.. Have you lived in a property on Nat'l Historic Reg? 4. No
5. Have you owned/now own a "classic" car? 5. No
6. Favorite sport/game now 6. Bicycling
7. Favorite pastime now 7. Bicycling
8. How are you saving the Earth? 8. Recycling
9. Important Cause you support 9. Nothing earth-shattering (see bio)
10. If Life is Perseverance and Luck - for you it has been 10. Luck % 30% Perseverance % 70%
11. Have you run for Office? 11.No
12. Do you write letters to the Editor? 12. No
13. Lead/Led an Organization? 13.Yes- Boy Scout district chairman
14. Personal Description in Life 14. Manager, consultant
15. Worst fashion fad since 1957 For men: too many to count For women: ditto
16. New word since 1957 that you use all the time: changes periodically
17. Best invention since 1957 - large in scope: computer technology
18. Best gadget since 1957: too many to count
19. Best medical breakthrough since 1957: too many to count
20. Your participation in the Computer revolution: very high: currently digitizing home movies, slides, photos, record albums. CDs/DVDs for kids+

Bio

You asked for this!! For some reason I became very long-winded since you didn't say "brief", not that it would have made any difference. Not a good editing job!! Maybe getting ready to write about my flying experiences in a book some day?

After graduation from Tufts as an Electrical Engineer I elected to work for Bell Telephone of PA (AT&T) as an engineering management trainee but the draft board wouldn't leave me alone (actually drafted twice but wiggled free) so I enrolled in Air Force officer training (also was accepted for Navy officer training - second choice). Bell gave me a 4½ year leave of absence. My first AF assignment after training was at Edwards AFB (CA) where I got to socialize (party) with many of the test pilots and future astronauts along with about 20 other new officer engineers with whom I worked with on developing future rocket propulsion systems, many of which actually worked (and were used). After two years of hard work (and partying) my flying "buddies" convinced me that I should go to flying school so that I could see the world (and earn what was in those days) lots of money, so I applied and was accepted for navigator training. A year later I was assigned to the first of several C-130 flying organizations and immediately went to work flying missions all over Europe and Asia (including our less than glorious withdrawal from France (Charles de Gaulle kicked us out of France - so much for helping them during the war) and assisting with the Viet Nam buildup. So much for my Bell leave of absence, as I decided I was having too much fun in the AF.

During all of this I got married and was immediately re-assigned to Okinawa where we continued our honeymoon and I became directly involved in the war effort for over three years, but at least I had my family (and new daughter, born on the island) to come home to occasionally. I got to make several new and long-lasting friendships as well as obtaining a life-time supply of war stories (my plane frequently came back with numerous bullet holes) since I was upgraded to an instructor and was "chosen" to fly the most difficult missions and earned the Distinguished Flying Cross for my help in re-supplying the Marines at Khe Sanh during its defense (at one point 20 consecutive days). Had to use airdrops when we lost control of the runway and had constant fighter escorts to help us. The DFC puts me in the company of a lot of famous war heroes (I consider myself excluded-just doing my job) and fliers, including the Wright Brothers whose exploits I have become very familiar with (after all I do live in Dayton OH where it all began and is the home of the AF museum). I managed to survive all of this "fun" (barely) and was re-assigned to a couple of stateside C-130 bases (Nashville and Little Rock included) as an aircrew instructor helping to get others to take over my combat duties.

After a couple of years of this the AF decided that I had "done my share" (hundreds of combat missions and 1500 combat hours) so they re-assigned me to Wright-Patterson AFB to obtain a masters degree in logistics management (the first of two as I completed an MBA later) after which I was assigned to various aircraft development offices (called system program offices -SPOs) where I assisted in the development of new aircraft including the C-17 and C-5B as the avionics/flight-deck development manager where I completed my Air Force career (retiring with 22 years of service). During my Wright-Patt days I still remained directly involved with flying test missions all over the world and served as Chief of Safety for the Test Wing located there. After the AF moved me to Dayton I decided that this was the place I wanted to stay and raise my family - 35 years and counting (added a son soon after arrival). After my AF retirement (my first of 4) I worked for 3 different Air Force related consulting firms with offices in the Dayton area after which I finally totally retired 20 years later.

Lessons of life are many: success requires lots of work to make things happen, you always have to look after yourself as there may not be anyone else helping you, and lots of luck is necessary in life (e.g., I used many sets of 9-lives during my flying career). I'm continually learning new things, especially in the world of computer technology, my knowledge of which is almost entirely self-taught. My biggest desire is to live long enough to complete my home movie/photo projects (they are very time-consuming) so that my kids will have a well-documented upbringing. I continue to visit/and volunteer at the many aviation-related facilities in the area and currently work as a volunteer bike patrol member wherein I help area park rangers patrol the area's several hundred miles of I have ridden more than 800 miles so far this year alone (since May).

Oh, I forgot. Been married for 41 years to Barb (amazing what she can put up with!), walk (rapidly) 3-5 miles every day, and my favorite background music is classical, (mainly orchestral).