Edward C. Aldridge Jr.

Edward "Pete" Cleveland Aldridge Jr. (born August 18, 1938) is an aerospace engineer and former government official in the U.S. Defense Department. He was also selected as a payload specialist for the Space Shuttle mission STS-62-A, scheduled to launch in July 1986. The mission was canceled after the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster in January 1986, and Aldridge never flew.

Pete Aldridge
United States Secretary of the Air Force
In office
April 6, 1986 – December 16, 1988
Acting: April 6, 1986 – June 8, 1986
PresidentRonald Reagan
Preceded byRussell A. Rourke
Succeeded byDonald Rice
9th Director of the National Reconnaissance Office
In office
August 3, 1981 – December 16, 1988
PresidentRonald Reagan
Preceded byRobert J. Hermann
Succeeded byMartin C. Faga
Personal details
Born
Edward Cleveland Aldridge Jr.

(1938-08-18) August 18, 1938
Houston, Texas, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
EducationTexas A&M University, College Station (BS)
Georgia Institute of Technology (MS)

At the Department of Defense in the 1980s, Aldridge served as the Under Secretary of the Air Force from 1981 to 1986, Director of the National Reconnaissance Office 1981–88,[1] and the Secretary of the Air Force from 1986 to 1988. Under President George W. Bush, he was the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics from 2001 to 2003.

From 1989 to 1992 he was president of the Electronic Systems Company division of McDonnell Douglas, and later, CEO of The Aerospace Corporation.

Education

Aldridge received a Bachelor of Science in aeronautical engineering from Texas A&M University in 1960 and a Master of Science from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Career

Aldridge was confirmed as the Pentagon's top weapons buyer on May 8, 2001. As the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, he had responsibility for acquisition, research and development, logistics, advanced technology, international programs, environmental security, nuclear, chemical, and biological programs, and the industrial base.

In 2002, during his time as Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, he authorized the acquisition of the F-35's before critical developmental testing was finished and stated the F-35 was "setting new standards for technological advances" and "rewriting the books on acquisition and business practices." His successor voiced a different opinion in 2012. "This will make a headline if I say it, but I'm going to say it anyway," Frank Kendall said. "Putting the F-35 into production years before the first test flight was acquisition malpractice. It should not have been done." As of 2012. The military has spent $373 million to fix planes already bought; the ultimate repair bill for imperfect planes has been estimated at close to $8 billion.[2]

He served in a variety of jobs, including:

Denial of Merchant Mariner's benefits

Secretary Aldridge was a key player in denying veteran's status to U.S. Merchant Marine serving from 1939 to 1946. Despite granting veteran's status to WASPs (who were disbanded in the middle of the war) Secretary Aldridge referred to the Merchant Marines (who had the highest casualty rates of the war) as a "subculture" and "draft dodgers." Aldridge altered statutes to set the end of World War II as August 15, 1945, instead of December 31, 1946. This resulted in the 1987 case "Schumacher, Willner, et al., v. Aldridge [Secretary of the Air Force Edward C. Aldridge, Jr.] 665 F. Supp. 41 (D.D.C. 1987)." Although Secretary Aldridge and his U.S. Air Force panel (who were assigned as "Merchant Marine experts" on the veterans claims board) lost, he still refused to grant veteran's status.[3]

Affiliations

Affiliations included:

Awards

In 2005, Aldridge received the General James E. Hill Lifetime Space Achievement Award,[4] by the Space Foundation. The award is in recognition for individuals who have made substantial contributions to space technology, information, themes, or resources.

References
  1. Laurie, Clayton. Leaders of the National Reconnaissance Office 1961–2001. Office of the Historian, National Reconnaissance Office. 1 May 2002.
  2. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2136312,00.html
  3. http://www.usmm.org/strugglevetstatus.html
  4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on February 3, 2009. Retrieved January 31, 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
Government offices
Preceded by
Antonia Handler Chayes		 Under Secretary of the Air Force
3 August 1981 – June 9, 1986		 Succeeded by
James F. McGovern
Preceded by
Robert J. Hermann		 Director of the National Reconnaissance Office
3 August 1981 – December 16, 1988		 Succeeded by
Martin C. Faga
Preceded by
Russell A. Rourke		 Secretary of the Air Force

(acting) April 8, 1986 – June 8, 1986
June 9, 1986 – December 16, 1988		 Succeeded by
James F. McGovern
(acting)
Preceded by
Jacques S. Gansler		 Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics
10 May 2001 – 23 May 2003		 Succeeded by
Michael W. Wynne
(acting)
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.