ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, TENN. -- Arnold Engineering Development Complex (AEDC) leadership values the important contributions of past and present personnel and recognizes their accomplishments each year through the AEDC Fellow Program.
This year, Dr. John Felderman and Dr. Grant Patterson will be inducted as AEDC Fellows at the annual AEDC Fellows Banquet at the Arnold Lakeside Center on June 25 at 5:30 p.m. Dr. C. David Brown, the deputy assistant secretary of the Defense for Developmental Test and Evaluation and the director of the Test Resource Management Center, will be the speaker.
An AEDC Fellow is recognized for personally making sustained, notable and valuable contributions in aerospace ground testing at AEDC.
Peggy Gray, the first female selected as a Fellow, and Phil Tarver will be inducted as AEDC Lifetime Achievement Fellows recognizing their notable and valuable lifetime contributions to the AEDC mission.
Dr. John Felderman
AEDC Fellow
Felderman was selected as an AEDC Fellow due to his contributions to AEDC high-enthalpy testing and evaluations. He retired from AEDC in 2006 as a principal engineer and scientist whose service to AEDC spanned 30 years.
During his involvement with an undergraduate research fellowship in the 1960s sponsored by the National Science Foundation, Felderman adapted platinum thin-film resistance thermometers for shock sensing and heat transfer measurements in a shock tube which are still in use at the AEDC arc heater facilities. Also during this time he contributed to multiple research efforts in the high enthalpy flow area, supporting magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) development, arc heaters and wind tunnels at AEDC. The efforts included the development of a computer program to analyze boundary layer development; predicting the effects of seeded flow on model ablation; arc heater flow characterization; modeling of dust particle acceleration in the dust erosion tunnel; and the development of an ethylene burner for hot exhaust simulation in sub-scale models tested in the Propulsion Wind Tunnel 16-foot transonic wind tunnel.
Felderman returned to AEDC in 1981 after working as an associate professor in the mechanical engineering department at South Dakota State University. Upon his return he was involved in the development of defining the arc heater flow field and the design of the Complex's H2 and H3 arc heaters. He also contributed to code development for modeling in the H3 arc heater.
Felderman has collaborated with colleagues to research and write more than 50 publications on wind tunnel testing, heat and high pressure flows in arc heater technology.
Dr. Grant Patterson
AEDC Fellow
Patterson, a 2005 AEDC retired aerospace engineering specialist and consultant, is recognized as an AEDC Fellow for his contributions to turbine engine and aerospace aircraft systems during his 38-year service for the Complex. The nomination submitted for his selection noted his outstanding technical leadership and innovations and analytical skills.
Patterson lead the effort to establish a turbine engine augmentor test capability at AEDC and was the analysis engineer for engine tests involving systems such as the Pratt & Whitney F100, General Electric (GE) F110, GE F414 and others.
During the 1970s and 1980s he led the effort to analyze acoustic resonances in the Complex's turbine engine test cells to understand the effects on an engine during a test. And he also aided in developing the Non-recoverable Stall program which defined engine stall characteristics to establish recovery techniques for an engine manufacturer.
His leadership involvement with the Snap-In/Snap-Out instrumentation capability helped save millions in instrumentation cost and has become a standard process between engine manufacturers and AEDC. The process streamlined the hookups between engine instrumentation and AEDC data acquisition ports.
Patterson has provided his analysis expertise to the development of a Best Practice publication for data validation in turbine engine test cells and to hypersonic aerodynamic tests.
Peggy Gray
AEDC Lifetime Achievement Fellow
Gray is the first female selected as an AEDC Lifetime Achievement Fellow for her outstanding financial leadership to AEDC and the Air Force during her 34-year career.
She retired in 2012 as the Financial Management (FM) deputy comptroller with the responsibility of overseeing approximately $400 million.
She began her career as a secretary in the in the Propulsion Wind Tunnel 4-foot transonic wind tunnel branch. Later, while serving as the secretary for the Test Operations technical director, she documented all recommended changes and prepared briefings gaining insight into the resource allocation process and sparking her interest in financial management.
By 1984, Gray was selected to be a budget clerk in the FM budget office and eventually a FM budget analyst in 1987. In her role as a budget analyst she was assigned responsibility over the Complex Test and Evaluation Support (TES) account where she facilitated customer-focused financial services and provided senior management with accurate and timely financial execution data.
She became a senior budget analyst in 1991 interfacing with internal and external customers on resource allocation matters. Gray ensured AEDC was compliant with U.S. Air Force and Command policies, issues and decisions.
After becoming the chief for the FM Analysis in 1995, she became the lead for the Capabilities Analysis Risk Assessment (CARA) team to drive AEDC resource allocation decisions in test capabilities. She led the team to avoid a $10.9 million budget reduction for AEDC in fiscal year 2005.
In June 2004, she was appointed as the FM deputy comptroller and later developed a new organizational structure providing better career paths and better professional development for FM personnel. Her innovative approaches resulted in gains in teamwork and efficiency and became the model for Command comptrollers.
Her leadership contributed to the successful accomplishments of numerous weapons systems testing critical to the national defense.
Phil Tarver
AEDC Lifetime Achievement Fellow
During a 35-year career at AEDC, Tarver captured iconic images in photographs depicting the Complex's dedication to developing the nation's aerospace superiority.
Tarver was the first photographer hired in 1954 to portray AEDC facilities and tests to the public including their unique and dramatic sizes and characteristics. His photos were human interest-based, to publicize the people at work.
He demonstrated a mastery of lighting, composition and public appeal by combining personnel - to establish scale and to provide a human touch - with strobe lighting to create the visionary photos that continue to grace AEDC publications, displays and websites.
Iconic photos such as the Propulsion Wind Tunnel 16-foot transonic tunnel plenum section "60-30" benefited from Tarver's creative ability to use lighting to portray the best image.
Images produced by Tarver provided a firm anchor point for the best publicity in recognition of AEDC within the Department of Defense, aerospace industry and technical community.
The Fellows program was established in 1989 and recognizes AEDC individuals who have made exceptionally distinguished and substantial contributions to the nation's aerospace ground testing capability at the Complex.
Candidates considered for selection as an AEDC Fellow, an AEDC Craftsmen Fellow, AEDC Lifetime Achievement Fellow or AEDC Honorary Fellow are current or retired military, civilian and operating contractor and subcontractor personnel assigned or previously assigned to AEDC.
The AEDC Fellow Banquet is open to the public. To register for the banquet by the June 12 deadline, call 454-6505.