William T. "Bill" Buckels
Feb. 29, 1936 – Feb. 12, 2024
Bill Buckels passed peacefully on February 12, 2024, surrounded by his two children, daughter-in-law, and grandson in Tulsa, OK. Known to his family as "Sonny," he was born February 29, 1936, in
Tallulah, Louisiana, to Geneva and Mallory Buckels. He had one older sister, Ladye Kathryn "Kitty" Roberts, who he adored.
When Bill was a young boy, his family moved to
Shreveport, Louisiana. He attended C.E. Byrd High School, where he played baseball and basketball. His basketball team lost the state championship game to Baton Rouge, 51-46.
After graduating from high school in 1954, he attended Louisiana State University for one year, then transferred to Southern Methodist University, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. While at SMU, his mother became ill with Multiple Sclerosis. To help with financial costs of tuition, he enlisted in the Army Reserve. After fulfilling his commitment, he returned to SMU, graduating in May 1960.
When Bill landed his first job as a Test Engineer at Aerojet in Sacramento, CA, he loaded all of his belongings and his golf clubs into his "little yeller" 1957 Thunderbird and headed west on Route 66, a drive (and car) he loved to reminisce about. "Obviously, I was the coolest guy on the planet," he would say with a wink and a grin. It was an epic trip for a young man from Louisiana.
At Aerojet, he was responsible for the static test firing of solid rocket engines including the Minuteman and Polaris ICBM solid rocket test area. While in Sacramento, he met his wife, Jean, and they soon married.
Bill's next job took them to
Jacksonville, Arkansas, where he worked as a test engineer, testing the Titan II Propellant Transfer System. In 1963, they moved to
Huntsville, Alabama, where Bill worked at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center as a Senior Project Engineer. He was responsible for the Instrument Unit Environmental Control System testing for the Saturn 1, 1-B, and V rockets.
In 1966, Bill went to work for General Electric, at the NASA Manned Spacecraft Center in
Houston, Texas, where he was the Manager of the Spacecraft Thermal Analysis Unit. Bill's team provided preflight thermal predictions for the Apollo Lunar missions, including Apollo 11, which made history in July 1969. His team also provided real-time support during the Apollo 13 emergency. In 1970, as part of the Apollo 13 Mission Operations Team, Bill received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Nixon for "transforming potential tragedy into one of the most dramatic rescues of all time."
In 1970, Bill transferred to Rockwell International Corp in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he was a Manager of Quality Engineering, working on the B-1B program, 747 commercial aircraft, Space Shuttle, MX Missile, and other programs. Tulsa became "home" for the Buckels family, although Bill wasn't finished travelling the globe for his work.
In 1985, when his supervisor and dear friend, Dave Little, transferred to Rocketdyne in Southern California to work on the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME), Delta and Atlas Rocket programs the MX Peacekeeper program. Dave soon recruited Bill because of his extensive knowledge in rocket engine design and manufacturing. Bill served as the Director of Manufacturing of the Space Shuttle Main Engines until he retired in 1997.
His retirement was short-lived, however, as his colleague Dave Little recruited him again to work for Kistler Aerospace in
Kirkland, Washington, where he was a Consultant for the K-1 Reusable Launch Vehicle. He made numerous trips to Australia to secure and design a launch site and also worked with NASA to secure and design a landing site.
After he retired, he settled in Atlanta, with his wonderful companion of 17 years, Betty Campbell. They enjoyed spending time with family and friends and traveling. As he entered his mid 80's, he decided to move back home to Tulsa to be near his children and grandson.
He was a loving father, uncle, grandfather, and friend who will be deeply missed by his family and cherished friends. Bill was preceded in death by his parents, Geneva and Mallory Buckels, and his sister, Ladye Kathryn Roberts. He is survived by his children, Kirk Buckels and Shannon Buckels, daughter-in-law Regina Riddle, grandson Roman Buckels, and six nieces and nephews.
Bill was an avid fisherman, golfer, and video poker player at just about every casino across the nation. During one of his last trips to the casino, he hit that elusive Royal Flush and claimed "It's all skill" with a wink and grin. One of his favorite movies was the musical "Oklahoma" and he would often quote lines from it. As he would surely say now, "I've gone about as fur as I can go."