Parker leaving his mark on AEDC Published Dec. 2, 2011 By Shawn Jacobs AEDC/PA ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. -- When J.Y. Parker first came to Arnold Engineering Development Center (AEDC) as a young engineer not long out of Auburn University, he expected to spend a few years getting a master's degree from the University of Tennessee Space Institute (UTSI) and return to Huntsville, Ala., where he previously had worked for Northrop Aircraft Corp. (now Northrop Grumman). Parker, who brought with him his wife, Susan, got his degree from UTSI within a few years and grew his family by two daughters, Melissa and Jenny. Melissa, mother of his grandson, Tucker, is now a business and employment attorney in McDonough, Ga. Jenny is a preservationist with the National Park Service in Washington, D.C. Parker is just now leaving AEDC, 38 years later, having worked in many of the business areas and leaving an impression on virtually every aspect of the center. His last day at work is Dec. 2. Parker, who has been director of Plans and Programs (XP) since 2005, worked on the contractor side from May of 1973 until January 1981, when he became a government civilian. "Obviously I've enjoyed what I've done at Arnold - both with the contractor and with the government," Parker said. "It's been a great career. I've been exposed to a lot of things and been given a lot of opportunities. The work we do and the people we work with - all of those things have been very rewarding. I know the center's made contributions to essentially every DOD system that flies. I like to think I've made contributions to all of the things I've been a part of during my career." Parker's "contributions" began in G-Range, where he was a project engineer for Arnold Research Organization (ARO). "I first supported work on ablation, and aerodynamics in G-Range," he said. "When we put the track in, I was the project manager on the first erosion test that we did on the track. I also worked in the chicken gun - some canopy work with the T-37, which was the side-by-side seat trainer - and the F-111 and B-1. My chicken gun work culminated with a program of measuring the impact forces against a steel flat plate." Parker next became a systems engineer in the Space Chambers, where he designed the space environment to test infrared sensors. That experience led to the opportunity to work for the Air Force, which was looking for somebody who had expertise in that type of testing. Parker got the job to run the original AEDC Space Test Branch, where he managed the Anti-satellite weapon (ASAT), Global Positioning Satellite (GPS), Titan payload fairing and numerous other tests. Next, Parker was assigned as the program director for Test Facility Acquisitions, where he promoted AEDC as the site for the DECADE facility, converted the 10V chamber from space propulsion to sensor testing, added the independent drive system to 4T and managed the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) relocation of SL-2, SL-3, T-11 and T-12. For his next assignment, Parker was detailed to the AF headquarters and Department of Defense (DOD) to work on the National Wind Tunnel Complex (NWTC). "That was a joint NASA/DOD/industry team, and that took three years out of my life, basically traveling. I averaged about 240 days of TDY (temporary duty) a year for three years supporting that program." Upon his return to AEDC full-time, Parker became the base civil engineer for a few months and then moved to the Test Business Management Office in late 1996. There he began developing the test side of the Program Objective Memorandum (POM), forecasting and defending AEDC's needs for budget in future years and running the business programming shop for anything that was done in the Test Directorate. "I did that from '96 to '01, when I was selected to run the Investments Division," Parker said. "I kind of went back to what I was doing before NWTC, but at a higher grade and probably more programs at one time." Some of the projects begun during his time in Investments included the Propulsion Consolidation Streamline (PC&S), the H-3 Arc Heater and the Propulsion Wind Tunnel (PWT) Sustainment, which included the new starting system, control room and another dryer in PWT. Modifications to the Aerodynamic and Propulsion Test Unit (APTU) were started during that time, along with a number of upgrades to the Sea Level Cells. Test cells J-1 and J-2 were also modified. Much of Parker's tenure at AEDC has dealt with acquisition, which he defined as "acquiring new test capability" and "the reconfiguration of what we have, adding new environments or rebuilding/improving the things that we already have. "If you're going to operate in the future, then you're going to constantly modify. It's keeping things in a state where we can support today's and tomorrow's weapons systems with what we have." Since becoming director of Plans and Programs, part of Parker's responsibility has been helping the commander frame and sell the value of AEDC to weapons system development. "It's making sure that Arnold's future is looked at as we program money through the bureaucracy that is the Planning, Programming, Budgeting and Execution System (PPBES) of DOD," he said. "We have to define today and what we'll need for the next six years of work. We've got to put a face on today if we want to have anything coming in ΚΎ14 and beyond, and so we build that with the help of everybody at the center." Parker said another part of Plans and Programs involves intelligence and keeping track of developments in foreign technology. "We've had a lot of smart engineers come through Arnold," he said. "Their ability to look at things and deduce what it will be used for helps the intelligence community put a face on what other countries are doing. It also gives AEDC insight into things that we need to be thinking about," he said. Aerospace Testing Alliance (ATA) Deputy General Manager Phil Stich said Parker has contributed to many successes across the AEDC mission during his career. "I have had the pleasure of working with Jim on a couple of major projects, the 4T independent drive system and the National Wind Tunnel Complex, and he has always represented AEDC very well," Stich said. "On the development of the National Wind Tunnel Complex, Jim spent at least two years on the road as AEDC's lead, with (almost) no complaints. He has been a great guy to work with and I am certain that he will enjoy his retirement." Throughout his career, much of Parker's job has dealt with planning for AEDC's future, which he is optimistic about, despite a struggling economy and looming budget cuts. "I'm optimistic," he said. "I'm also realistic. I read the paper; I also have insight into things that you don't see in the paper. Things are going to have to be different, but we've got the right people in place to lead and guide that change. The center will continue to provide services to the acquisition system in the future. There's no doubt in my mind about that." Parker's personal plans beyond retirement haven't been finalized beyond immersing himself in his hobbies and family activities. "I have no professional plans after retirement, but I do plan on playing more golf," Parker said. "I built a woodshop a number of years ago and I really enjoy doing woodwork. I like to make furniture, either period reproductions or of my own design." Parker said he hopes to get back into genealogy research, which he put a hold on in the late 1990s. He also wants to spend more time with his 7-year-old grandson, who enjoys golf, baseball and working in the woodshop. "There are a lot of challenges in AEDC's future," he said. "Colonel Brewer constantly reminds me, 'You're going to miss the fight.' Maybe, but probably not. I'm ready to not wake up at night thinking about things that I ought to be doing. It just feels right. There's a good team left to pick up, and that's fine.