AEDC’s Rita Bell retires after a long and rewarding career at Tunnel 9

  • Published
  • By Philip Lorenz III
  • AEDC/PA
ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. --  Rita Bell, the data reduction and computer software mathematician at AEDC's Hypervelocity Tunnel 9 facility in White Oak, Md., is retiring after a long career spanning more than 40 years.

"Rita Bell was a member of a three-person data reduction team at the Naval Surface Weapons Center White Oak Wind Tunnel Complex when I arrived at work in 1984," said Dan Marren, Tunnel 9's site director. "While I learned my trade as a journeyman test engineer, I developed an understanding of what it took to make a successful project and very quickly understood that this team of highly intelligent and actually very nice women - all three were female - were the keys to a well executed wind tunnel test."

Marren said Bell was a core member of the team during his whole time at Tunnel 9.

"Rita would instruct me as to the steps I needed to accomplish and the people I needed to work with to make my project successful," he said. "Insights into personalities of other team members and tricks of the trade were imparted as well. I owe Rita for helping me avoid several 'land mines' over the years."

Marren said Bell wrote most of the code, which on those early years were on punch cards.

"Rita was singularly responsible for ensuring our reduction code kept current with the times," he said. "She took us through FORTRAN and eventually into MATLAB where it exists today with GUI (graphics user interfaces) and some very customer-friendly attributes that make the job of our technical staff more effective and efficient."

Bell retired from the government after a full career and agreed to stay on with ATA where she worked "another full career."

Marren said, "She is still the only person in the world who has been able to push the run button of Tunnel 9 - without the five years of operator training as she did for our 3,000th test run."

Marren said Bell's impact on her coworkers extends well beyond her professional attributes.

"On a personal side, Rita never missed an opportunity to raise morale around the site by frequently donning appropriate 'costumes' for Halloween, Easter, Christmas and no hallmark holiday would ever be complete without the 'Rita touch,'" Marren said. "I for one am extremely grateful in having the opportunity to learn from many of the original Navy folks at Tunnel 9 - Rita included - and my daily work ethic and demeanor contains residue from those times.

"Rita plans a rich retirement in the things that matter. She intends to continue to enjoy life and family and I'm sure we will be graced with her presence from time to time as we have particular White Oak milestone celebrations. Maybe she can push the button for our 5,000th test run."