Robert Franklyn Overmyer (July 14, 1936 – March 22, 1996) was an American test pilot, naval aviator, aeronautical engineer, physicist, United States Marine Corps officer, and USAF/NASA astronaut. Overmyer was selected by the Air Force as an astronaut for its Manned Orbiting Laboratory in 1966. Upon cancellation of the program in 1969, he became a NASA astronaut and served support crew duties for the Apollo program, Skylab program, and Apollo–Soyuz Test Project. In 1976, he was assigned to the Space Shuttle program and flew as pilot on STS-5 in 1982 and as commander on STS-51-B in 1985. He was selected as a lead investigator into the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster in 1986, retiring from NASA that same year. A decade later, Overmyer died while testing the Cirrus VK-30 homebuilt aircraft.

Early life and education

Overmyer was born on July 14, 1936, to Rolandus Overmyer (1906–1968) and Margaret June Overmyer ( Fabian; 1908–1979) in Lorain, Ohio, but considered Westlake, Ohio, his hometown. Overmyer was active in the Boy Scouts of America and earned the rank of First Class. He graduated from Westlake High School in 1954 and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in physics from Baldwin–Wallace College in 1958, and a Master of Science degree in aeronautics with a major in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School in 1964.

Career

Marine Corps

Overmyer entered active duty with the Marine Corps in January 1958. After completing Navy flight training in Kingsville, Texas, he was assigned to VMA-214 in November 1959. He was assigned to the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School in 1962 to study aeronautical engineering. Upon completion of his graduate studies, he served one year with Marine Maintenance Squadron 17 at MCAS Iwakuni, Japan before being assigned to the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, California. He was chosen as an astronaut for the Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) program in 1966.

Overmyer retired from NASA and the Marine Corps in May 1986.

Death and family

thumb|180px|right|Grave of Robert Overmyer at [[Arlington National Cemetery]]

Overmyer died in a plane crash on March 22, 1996, near the Duluth International Airport while testing the VK-30. and is survived by his wife, Katherine, and three children: Carolyn Marie (born 1966), Patricia Ann (born 1968), and Robert Rolandus (born 1970).

See also

  • List of spaceflight records

References

:

  • Astronautix biography of Robert F. Overmyer
  • Encyclopedia of Baldwin Wallace History: Robert Overmyer