William S. Aiken Jr.

AIKEN, JR. , William S. On May 27, 2011, WILLIAM S. AIKEN JR. (Bill), a longtime resident of Bowie Maryland, died at the age of 90. William S. Aiken Jr. was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey on 11 November 1920 to William S. Aiken and Amy Mack Aiken. He had one sister name Frances who was married to Robert Denton both now deceased. Bill was a precocious child who excelled academically and in sports. From a very early age he was always tops in his class and worked actively on a variety of school programs and activities. He served as class president in both junior and high school. His academic excellence served him well when he graduated with honors from Thomas Jefferson High School in 1938 and then attended Rennsalear Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, NY. Bill attended RPI from 1938 until his graduation in 1942. Because of his early childhood love of airplanes he majored in aeronautical engineering. While in college he was an active member of the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity and served as an officer in a number of leadership positions. While at school, he met his future wife Aileen Louis Saum who was attending the nearby Russell Sage College. Bill and Aileen were married on 10 June 1942. Bill began his career as an aeronautical engineer for the federal government. In 1942, he joined Langley Laboratory as a junior aeronautical engineer and after forty years of distinguished service he retired as the Director of Aeronautics for NASA. During his time at Langley he worked on a number of critical aircraft programs. He served as the Project Engineer of the B- 24D and the initial flight tests of the X-1( the first supersonic aircraft). He was also the Project Engineer for the B-45A, B-47, and served as Assistant Chief of Aircraft and Missiles Division. In 1961 he was promoted and moved to NASA Headquarter in Washington D.C. In his years at NASA Headquarters, he assumed a number of positions of increased responsibility and was awarded many honors. He was elected Deputy Chairman and then Chairman of the NATOAGARD Flight Mechanics Panel (1979-1983). During his distinguished service, he received two medals for outstanding leadership and one for exceptional service. He was selected as a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and earned the rank of Meritorious Executive in the Federal Service. Bill enjoyed model airplanes, stamp and coin collecting (like his father), shell collecting, crossword puzzles, and was an avid reader of military history and classic novels. He was a dedicated fan of the Washington Redskins, the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, and his favorite college basketball team was Duke. Bill is survived by his spouse Aileen to whom he was married to for 67 years. He and Aileen have three children: William S. Aiken III wife Susan, Frances Ann Mitchell husband Joe, and David Aiken wife Julia. His grandchildren are; Amy L. Aiken and Allen Bradley, Thomas and John Aiken (the twins), Severin Aiken, Lucy Aiken, David Allen Mitchell and Judith Reipl, Ian Mitchell wife Carrie Krug, William Tristan Mitchell wife Sara, and Sarah husband Jeremy Dunkle and Rahmi Aiken. His great grand children are; Allyssa Bradley, Joshua Aiken, Ella and Liam Mitchell, Madeleine and David Mitchell, Lilly Mitchell and Cassandra Dunkle. William S. Aiken Jr. lived a great life. He had a loving wife and family and a wonderful career. He did everything he wanted to do and really enjoyed every minute of the time he had here on earth. But throughout his life and up until the very end his favorite hours were those he spent with his family. He loved going on trips with them, especially going to Nags Head, North Carolina, during the summer. He looked forward to every holiday that they would spend together. He loved watching his grandchildren and his great grand-children growing up. No one who knew him could deny the true contentment he felt sitting on any deck, chatting and hanging out with his family. Whenever and wherever the family gathered, you knew that there was nowhere else he would rather be. He was a wonderful man and a devoted husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather.
A funeral service will be held at the All Saints Church Episcopal Church in Reisterstown, Maryland at 11 O'clock on the 11th of June 2011. Contributions or donations may be made to the Nature Conservancy one of Bill's favorite charities.