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Edward Henry Heinemann, (14 March 1908 – 26 November 1991) was a noted military aircraft
Military aircraft

A military aircraft is any Fixed-wing aircraft or military helicopters aircraft that is in the current employ of a military power. Fixed-wing military aircraft are also known as warplanes....
 designer for Douglas Aircraft.

emann was born in Saginaw, Michigan
Michigan

Michigan is a Midwestern United States U.S. state of the United States of America. It was named after Lake Michigan, whose name is a French adaptation of the Anishinaabe language term mishigama, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, but moved to California
California

California is a U.S. state on the West Coast of the United States of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, and to the south the Mexico state of Baja California....
 as a boy and was raised in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles

Los ?ngeles is the Capital of the Biob?o Province, in the municipality of the same name, in Regions of Chile VIII , in the center-south of Chile....
. A self-taught engineer, he joined Douglas Aircraft as a draftsman in 1926, but was laid off within a year. After stints at International Aircraft, Moreland Aircraft, and Northrop, Heinemann re-joined Douglas when it acquired Northrop.






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Edward Henry Heinemann, (14 March 1908 – 26 November 1991) was a noted military aircraft
Military aircraft

A military aircraft is any Fixed-wing aircraft or military helicopters aircraft that is in the current employ of a military power. Fixed-wing military aircraft are also known as warplanes....
 designer for Douglas Aircraft.

Biography

Heinemann was born in Saginaw, Michigan
Michigan

Michigan is a Midwestern United States U.S. state of the United States of America. It was named after Lake Michigan, whose name is a French adaptation of the Anishinaabe language term mishigama, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, but moved to California
California

California is a U.S. state on the West Coast of the United States of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, and to the south the Mexico state of Baja California....
 as a boy and was raised in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles

Los ?ngeles is the Capital of the Biob?o Province, in the municipality of the same name, in Regions of Chile VIII , in the center-south of Chile....
. A self-taught engineer, he joined Douglas Aircraft as a draftsman in 1926, but was laid off within a year. After stints at International Aircraft, Moreland Aircraft, and Northrop, Heinemann re-joined Douglas when it acquired Northrop. Heinemann became Douglas's Chief Engineer in 1936. He remained with the company through 1960, when he left to join Guidance Technology. In 1962 he joined General Dynamics
General Dynamics

General Dynamics Corporation is a defense conglomerate formed by mergers and divestitures, and as of 2008 it is the fifth largest defense contractor in the world....
 as Corporate Vice President of Engineering. In this position he oversaw the development of the F-16. He retired in 1973.

His approach to aircraft design was often simple, once saying that he just took the most powerful engine available, and designed the aircraft around that.

Designs

During his long career at Douglas, Heinemann designed more than 20 combat aircraft for the US Navy, including many that became legends in aviation history. His designs included:

  • SBD Dauntless
    SBD Dauntless

    The Douglas SBD Dauntless was a naval dive bomber made by Douglas Aircraft Company during World War II. The SBD was the United States Navy's main dive bomber from mid-1940 until late 1943, when it was supplanted, although not entirely replaced, by the SB2C Helldiver....
     dive bomber
    Dive bomber

    A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy and limit the exposure to and effectiveness of Anti-aircraft warfare fire....
  • A-20 Havoc attack aircraft
  • A-26 Invader
    A-26 Invader

    The Douglas A-26 Invader was a United States twin-engined light attack aircraft bomber built by the Douglas Aircraft Co. during World War II that also saw service during several of the Cold War's major conflicts....
     attack aircraft
  • A-1 Skyraider
    A-1 Skyraider

    The Douglas A-1 Skyraider was a United States single-seat ground attack aircraft bomber of the 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s. A propeller-driven anachronism in the jet age, the Skyraider had a remarkably long and successful career well into the space age, and inspired a straight-winged, slow-flying, jet-powered successor which is still...
     attack aircraft
  • A-3 Skywarrior
    A-3 Skywarrior

    The Douglas Aircraft Company A-3 Skywarrior was a strategic bomber built for the United States Navy and among the longest serving carrier-based jet aircraft....
     bomber
    Bomber

    A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, primarily by dropping bombs on them....
  • A-4 Skyhawk
    A-4 Skyhawk

    The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a aircraft carrier ground-attack aircraft designed for the United States Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. The delta winged "Skyhawk", powered by a single turbojet was designed and produced by Douglas Aircraft Company ....
     light bomber
    Bomber

    A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, primarily by dropping bombs on them....
  • F3D Skyknight
    F3D Skyknight

    The Douglas F3D Skyknight, was a United States twin-engine, midwing jet fighter aircraft manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company in El Segundo, California....
     night fighter
    Night fighter

    A night fighter is a fighter aircraft adapted for use at night or in other times of bad visibility.Night fighters came into their own during World War II, made possible with the advent of airborne radar....
  • F4D Skyray
    F4D Skyray

    The United states Douglas F4D Skyray was a aircraft carrier-based Fighter aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company. Although it was in service for a relatively short time and never entered combat, it was notable for being the first carrier-launched aircraft to hold the world's absolute speed record and was the first United States Navy...
     carrier-based
    Aircraft carrier

    An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a navy force to project air power great distances without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations....
     fighter aircraft
    Fighter aircraft

    A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets by dropping bombs....
  • Douglas Skyrocket
    Douglas Skyrocket

    The Douglas Skyrocket was a rocket and jet-powered supersonic research aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company for the United States Navy....
     and Douglas Skystreak
    Douglas Skystreak

    The United States Douglas Skystreak was a single-engine jet research aircraft of the 1940s. It was designed in 1945 in aviation by the Douglas Aircraft Company for the U.S....
     research aircraft


One of the first aircraft to be designed by Heinemann was the Moreland M-1 Trainer of 1929, a braced-wing parasol-wing monoplane. Due to the 1929 recession only a small number were sold before the company ceased trading in 1933.

Awards and medals

  • 1953
    1953 in aviation

    This is a list of aviation-related events from 1953:Events The first year in which the world's airlines carried more than 50 million people ...
    : Collier Trophy
    Collier Trophy

    The Collier Trophy is an annual aviation award administered by the U.S. National Aeronautics Association , presented to those who have made "the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America, with respect to improving the performance, efficiency, and safety of air or space vehicles, the value of which has been thoroughly de...
     (for the F4D Skyray
    F4D Skyray

    The United states Douglas F4D Skyray was a aircraft carrier-based Fighter aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company. Although it was in service for a relatively short time and never entered combat, it was notable for being the first carrier-launched aircraft to hold the world's absolute speed record and was the first United States Navy...
    )
  • 1978: Guggenheim Medal
  • 1981
    1981 in aviation

    This is a list of aviation-related events from 1981:...
    : National Aviation Hall of Fame
    National Aviation Hall of Fame

    The United States of America National Aviation Hall of Fame is located at the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, east Dayton, Ohio....
  • 1983: National Medal of Science
    National Medal of Science

    The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral science and social sciences, biology, chemistry, engineering, mathematics and physics....


The Naval Air Systems Command awards the "Edward H. Heinemann Award" annually to the individual or group that makes a significant contribution to aircraft design.

External links