Edward Henry Heinemann (March 14, 1908 – November 26, 1991) was a
military aircraft
A military aircraft is any Fixed-wing aircraft, fixed-wing or rotorcraft, rotary-wing aircraft that is operated by a legal or insurrectionary armed service of any type. Military aircraft can be either combat or non-combat:
* Combat aircraft are ...
designer for the
Douglas Aircraft Company
The Douglas Aircraft Company was an American aerospace manufacturer based in Southern California. It was founded in 1921 by Donald Wills Douglas Sr. and later merged with McDonnell Aircraft in 1967 to form McDonnell Douglas; it then operated a ...
.
Biography
Heinemann was born in
Saginaw, Michigan
Saginaw () is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of Saginaw County. The city of Saginaw and Saginaw County are both in the area known as Mid-Michigan. Saginaw is adjacent to Saginaw Charter Township and considered part of Greate ...
. He moved to
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
as a boy and was raised in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
. A self-taught
engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considerin ...
, he joined
Douglas Aircraft as a
draftsman in 1926, but was laid off within a year. After stints at
International Aircraft,
Moreland Aircraft, and the first
Northrop Corporation
Northrop Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer from its formation in 1939 until its 1994 merger with Grumman to form Northrop Grumman. The company is known for its development of the flying wing design, most successfully the B-2 Sp ...
, Heinemann rejoined Douglas after it acquired Northrop. Heinemann became Douglas's Chief Engineer in 1936. He remained with the company through 1960, when he left to join
Guidance Technology. In 1962 he joined
General Dynamics
General Dynamics Corporation (GD) is an American publicly traded, aerospace and defense corporation headquartered in Reston, Virginia. As of 2020, it was the fifth-largest defense contractor in the world by arms sales, and 5th largest in the Uni ...
as Corporate Vice President of Engineering. In this position he oversaw the development of the
F-16
The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successf ...
. He retired in 1973.
The famed airplane designer
Burt Rutan would list Heinemann as among the leading pioneers in aviation who had inspired him to become an aerospace engineer.
His approach to aircraft design was uncomplicated, once saying that he simply took the most powerful engine available and designed the
aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or by using the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in ...
around it.
Designs
During his long career at Douglas, Heinemann designed more than 20 combat aircraft, primarily for the
U.S. Navy, including many that became legends in aviation history. His designs included the following aircraft:
*
SBD Dauntless dive bomber
A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target simplifies the bomb's trajectory and allows the pilot to keep visual contact through ...
*
A-20 Havoc
The Douglas A-20 Havoc (company designation DB-7) is an American medium bomber, attack aircraft, night intruder, night fighter, and reconnaissance aircraft of World War II.
Designed to meet an Army Air Corps requirement for a bomber, it was o ...
light bomber
A light bomber is a relatively small and fast type of military bomber aircraft that was primarily employed before the 1950s. Such aircraft would typically not carry more than one ton of ordnance.
The earliest light bombers were intended to dro ...
/
attack aircraft
An attack aircraft, strike aircraft, or attack bomber is a tactical military aircraft that has a primary role of carrying out airstrikes with greater precision than bombers, and is prepared to encounter strong low-level air defenses while pre ...
*
A-26 Invader
The Douglas A-26 Invader (designated B-26 between 1948 and 1965) is an American twin-engined light bomber and ground attack aircraft. Built by Douglas Aircraft Company during World War II, the Invader also saw service during several major ...
light bomber
A light bomber is a relatively small and fast type of military bomber aircraft that was primarily employed before the 1950s. Such aircraft would typically not carry more than one ton of ordnance.
The earliest light bombers were intended to dro ...
/
attack aircraft
An attack aircraft, strike aircraft, or attack bomber is a tactical military aircraft that has a primary role of carrying out airstrikes with greater precision than bombers, and is prepared to encounter strong low-level air defenses while pre ...
*
A-1 Skyraider
The Douglas A-1 Skyraider (formerly known as the AD Skyraider) is an American single-seat attack aircraft in service from 1946 to the early 1980s. The Skyraider had an unusually long career, remaining in front-line service well into the Jet Ag ...
attack aircraft
An attack aircraft, strike aircraft, or attack bomber is a tactical military aircraft that has a primary role of carrying out airstrikes with greater precision than bombers, and is prepared to encounter strong low-level air defenses while pre ...
*
A-3 Skywarrior bomber
A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped from an air ...
*
A-4 Skyhawk light bomber
A light bomber is a relatively small and fast type of military bomber aircraft that was primarily employed before the 1950s. Such aircraft would typically not carry more than one ton of ordnance.
The earliest light bombers were intended to dro ...
*
F3D Skyknight night fighter
*
F4D Skyray carrier-based
Carrier-based aircraft, sometimes known as carrier-capable aircraft or carrier-borne aircraft, are naval aircraft
Naval aviation is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land base ...
fighter aircraft
Fighter aircraft are fixed-wing military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield ...
*
Douglas Skystreak and
Douglas Skyrocket research aircraft
One of the first aircraft to be designed by Heinemann was the Moreland M-1 Trainer of 1929, a
braced-wing
parasol wing monoplane
A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes.
A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing con ...
. Due to the 1929
recession
In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...
only a small number were sold before the company ceased trading in 1933.
Awards and medals
*
1953
Events
January
* January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma.
* January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a government-in-exile in Oslo.
* January 14
** Marshal Josip Broz Tito is chosen President of Yugosl ...
:
Collier Trophy
The Robert J. Collier Trophy is an annual aviation award administered by the U.S. National Aeronautic Association (NAA), presented to those who have made "the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America, with respect to ...
(for the
F4D Skyray)
* 1978:
Guggenheim Medal
*
1981:
National Aviation Hall of Fame
The National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF) is a museum, annual awards ceremony and learning and research center that was founded in 1962 as an Ohio non-profit corporation in Dayton, Ohio, United States, known as the "Birthplace of Aviation" with it ...
*1982:
International Air & Space Hall of Fame[Sprekelmeyer, Linda, editor. ''These We Honor: The International Aerospace Hall of Fame''. Donning Co. Publishers, 2006. .]
* 1983:
National Medal of Science
The Naval Air Systems Command awards the Edward H. Heinemann Award annually to an individual or group that makes a significant contribution to aircraft design.
References
Further reading
*
* Edward H. Heinemann and Rosario Rausa, "Ed Heinemann – Combat Aircraft Designer",
External links
Heinemann biographyat Skyhawk Association site
Edward Henry Heinemann Personal Papers San Diego Air and Space Museum Library and Archives
Edward Henry Heinemann(Photo Collection), Flickr, San Diego Air and Space Museum Archives
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heinemann, Ed
1908 births
1991 deaths
People from Saginaw, Michigan
American aerospace engineers
National Medal of Science laureates
National Aviation Hall of Fame inductees
20th-century American engineers