View source for Robert F. Overmyer

{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2023}}
{{Short description|American astronaut (1936–1996)}}
{{Infobox astronaut
|name          = Robert F. Overmyer
|image         = Overmyer robert 4.jpg
|caption       = Overmyer in his spacesuit in 1982
|birth_name    = Robert Franklyn Overmyer
|birth_date    = {{birth date|1936|7|14|mf=y}}
|birth_place   = [[Lorain, Ohio]], U.S.
|death_date    = {{death date and age|1996|3|22|1936|7|14}}
|death_place   = [[Duluth, Minnesota]], U.S.
|restingplace  = [[Arlington National Cemetery]]
|education     = [[Baldwin Wallace University]] ([[Bachelor of Science|BS]])<br>[[Naval Postgraduate School]] ([[Master of Science|MS]])
|awards        = [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]]
|type          = [[NASA astronaut]]
|rank          = [[Colonel (United States)|Colonel]], [[United States Marine Corps|USMC]]
|time          = 12d 2h 22m
|selection     = [[List of astronauts by selection#1966|USAF MOL Group 2 (1966)]]<br>[[NASA Astronaut Group 7|NASA Group 7 (1969)]]
|mission       = [[STS-5]]<br>[[STS-51-B]]
|insignia      = [[File:Sts-5-patch.png|45px]] [[File:Sts-51-b-patch.png|45px]]
|retirement    = June 1986
}}
'''Robert Franklyn''' "'''Bob'''" '''Overmyer''' (July 14, 1936 – March 22, 1996) was an American [[test pilot]], [[naval aviator]], [[aeronautical engineer]], [[physicist]], [[United States Marine Corps|United States Marine Corps officer]], and [[United States Air Force|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|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 ({{nee}} 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 Scout (Boy Scouts of America)|First Class]].<ref>[http://www.scouting.org/About/FactSheets/scouting_space.aspx Robert F. Overmyer at scouting.org] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304032406/http://www.scouting.org/about/factsheets/scouting_space.aspx |date=March 4, 2016 }}</ref> He graduated from [[Westlake High School (Ohio)|Westlake High School]] in 1954 and earned a [[Bachelor of Science]] degree in [[physics]] from [[Baldwin Wallace University|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.<ref name="NASA Bio">{{cite web|url=https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/overmyer_robert.pdf |title=Astronaut Bio: ROBERT F. OVERMYER (COLONEL, USMC, RET.) NASA ASTRONAUT (DECEASED)|author=National Aeronautics and Space Administration |date=March 1996|publisher=[[NASA]]|access-date=May 14, 2021|author-link=National Aeronautics and Space Administration}}</ref>

==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.<ref name="NASA Bio"/>

Overmyer logged over 7,500 flight hours, with over 6,000 in [[jet aircraft]].<ref name="NASA Bio"/>

===NASA===
The MOL program was canceled in 1969 and Overmyer was selected as part of [[NASA Astronaut Group 7]], where his first assignment was engineering development on the [[Skylab]] Program from 1969 to 1971. From 1971–72, he was a support crew member for [[Apollo 17]] and was the launch [[capsule communicator]] (CAPCOM). From 1973–75, he was a support crew member for the [[Apollo-Soyuz Test Project]] and was the NASA CAPCOM in the mission control center in [[Moscow]]. In 1976, he was assigned duties on the space shuttle [[Approach and Landing Tests]] (ALT) program and was the prime [[T-38 Talon]] chase pilot for Orbiter Free-Flights 1 and 3. In 1979, he was assigned as the deputy vehicle manager of OV-102 (''[[Space Shuttle Columbia|Columbia]]'') in charge of finishing the manufacturing and tiling of ''Columbia'' at the Kennedy Space Center in preparation for its first flight. This assignment lasted until ''Columbia'' was transported to the launch pad in 1980.<ref name="NASA Bio"/>

====Space Shuttle====
=====STS-5=====
{{Main|STS-5}}
[[File:STS-5 Overmyer behind pilot's seat.jpg|thumb|Overmyer on the flight deck of Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' during the STS-5 mission]]
Overmyer was the pilot for [[STS-5]], the first fully operational flight of the shuttle program, which launched from [[Kennedy Space Center]], [[Florida]], on November 11, 1982. He was accompanied by spacecraft commander [[Vance D. Brand]] and two [[Mission Specialist|mission specialists]], [[Joseph P. Allen]] and [[William B. Lenoir]]. STS-5, the first mission with a four-man crew, clearly demonstrated the shuttle as fully operational by the successful first deployment of two commercial communications satellites from the orbiter's payload bay. The mission marked the first use of the [[Payload Assist Module]] (PAM-D) and its new ejection system. Numerous flight tests were performed throughout the mission to document shuttle performance during launch, boost, orbit, atmospheric entry and landing phases. STS-5 was the last flight to carry the Development Flight Instrumentation (DFI) package to support flight testing. A [[Getaway Special]], three Student Involvement Projects and medical experiments were also included on the mission. The STS-5 crew successfully concluded the five-day orbital flight of ''Columbia'' with the first entry and landing through a cloud deck to a hard-surface runway and demonstrated maximum braking. Mission duration was 122 hours before landing on a concrete runway at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on November 16, 1982.<ref name="NASA Bio"/>

=====STS-51-B=====
{{Main|STS-51-B}}
[[File:STS51B-101-025.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Overmyer, second from left, with fellow crew members of STS-51-B]]
Overmyer was the commander of [[STS-51-B]], the Spacelab-3 (SL-3) mission. He commanded a crew of four astronauts and two [[Payload Specialist|payload specialists]] conducting a broad range of scientific experiments from space physics to the suitability of animal holding facilities. STS-51-B was also the first shuttle flight to launch a small payload from a "Getaway Special" canister. STS-51-B launched at 12:02&nbsp;p.m. EDT on April 29, 1985, from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, and landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California, at 9:11&nbsp;a.m. PDT on May 6, 1985. STS-51-B completed 110 orbits of Earth at an altitude of 190 nautical miles.<ref name="NASA Bio"/>

[[File:STS-51-B Overmyer aims camera.jpg|thumb|right|Overmyer aiming a camera out of an overhead window of [[Space Shuttle Challenger|Space Shuttle ''Challenger'']] during the STS-51-B mission]]
In 1986, Overmyer was involved in the recovery of the [[Space Shuttle Challenger disaster|''Challenger'' disaster]] crew remains and was also one of NASA's lead investigators into the incident.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Barbree |first1=Jay |title=Chapter 6: Raising heroes from the sea |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna3078060 |access-date=July 17, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Astronauts Active in Quest for Answers About Disaster |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/02/18/science/astronauts-active-in-quest-for-answers-about-disaster.html |access-date=July 17, 2021 |date=February 18, 1986}}</ref>

Overmyer retired from NASA and the Marine Corps in May 1986.<ref name="NASA Bio"/>

===Post NASA===
After retiring from the space industry, Overmyer commenced his own consulting business, Mach Twenty Five International, Inc. He consulted with major aerospace corporations and the National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) as well as writing a column for the British magazine Space Flight News. In March 1988, he joined the Space Station Team at [[McDonnell Douglas]] Aerospace, where he led crew and operations activities for seven years. He retired from McDonnell Douglas in April 1995 and expanded the scope of Mach Twenty Five International, continuing his aerospace consultation work as well as speaking engagements and writing.

====Test pilot====
Overmyer continued his career as a [[general aviation]] test pilot. Having former experience with aeronautical testing at both [[U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School]] and [[NASA]], he joined [[Duluth, Minnesota]]-based aircraft manufacturer [[Cirrus Design]] (now called Cirrus Aircraft) as a test pilot in November 1995. He contributed to [[stall (flight)|stall]] testing of the company's first design, the [[Cirrus VK-30]] [[kit aircraft]], which first flew in 1988. He also performed early [[type certificate|certification]] testing for the [[Cirrus SR20]], which was certified in 1998 and helped pioneer the use of [[glass cockpits]], [[composite materials]] and [[ballistic parachute]]s in the [[light aircraft|light]] production aircraft industry.<ref name=FlightGlobal>{{cite web|url=https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/former-astronaut-killed-in-cirrus-vk30-test-crash-17433/|title = Former astronaut killed in Cirrus VK30 test crash|access-date = January 29, 2016|last = Warwick|first = Graham|date=April 1996}}</ref>

==Death and family==
[[File:ANCExplorer Robert F. Overmyer grave.jpg|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.<ref name=FlightGlobal/> He was testing the plane's wing for full-flap [[stall (aircraft)|stall]] recovery characteristics at aft [[Center of gravity of an aircraft|center of gravity limits]] when the aircraft departed controlled flight. He was interred at [[Arlington National Cemetery]]<ref>[https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Explore/Notable-Graves/Astronauts Notable Graves: Astronauts] – ArlingtonCemetery.mil (Official website)</ref><ref>[https://ancexplorer.army.mil/publicwmv/#/arlington-national/search/results/1/CghvdmVybXllchIGcm9iZXJ0/ Burial Detail: Overmyer, Robert F] – ANC Explorer</ref> and is survived by his wife, Katherine, and three children: Carolyn Marie (born 1966), Patricia Ann (born 1968), and Robert Rolandus (born 1970).<ref name="NASA Bio"/>

==Organizations and honors==
Overmyer was a member of the [[Society of Experimental Test Pilots]], [[Experimental Aircraft Association]], and [[Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association]].<ref name="NASA Bio"/>

{{multiple image
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| image1 = Overmyer-Ohio Marker-Back.jpg
| width1 = 200
| caption1 = Robert F. Overmyer Ohio Historical Marker (front)
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| caption2 = Robert F. Overmyer Ohio Historical Marker (back)
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He was awarded the [[Meritorious Service Medal (United States)|Air Force Meritorious Service Medal]] in 1969 for duties with the USAF Manned Orbiting Laboratory program; the Marine Corps Meritorious Service Medal in 1978 for duties as the chief chase pilot and support crewman for the Shuttle Approach and Landing Test Program; an [[Honorary degree|Honorary]] [[Doctor of Philosophy]] degree from Baldwin–Wallace College, December 1982; the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School Distinguished Engineers Award in January 1983; the [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]] (1983); and the [[NASA Space Flight Medal]] (1983).<ref name="NASA Bio" />

There is an Ohio [[Historical Marker]] in Clague Park, [[Westlake, Ohio]], commemorating his life and career.<ref>{{cite web|title=Westlake Historical Society dedicates marker in memory of astronaut, Robert Overmyer (photo gallery)|url=https://www.cleveland.com/westlake/2014/08/westlake_historical_society_de.html|date=August 23, 2014|publisher=Cleveland.com|access-date=January 14, 2023}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of spaceflight records]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}
:{{Include-NASA}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20020330204028/http://www.astronautix.com/astros/overmyer.htm Astronautix biography of Robert F. Overmyer]
* [https://libguides.bw.edu/c.php?g=1002685&p=7263997#Wiki58 Encyclopedia of Baldwin Wallace History: Robert Overmyer]
* {{IMDb name|0974524}}

{{NASA Astronaut Group 7}}
{{Cirrus aircraft}}
{{Authority control}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Overmyer, Robert Franklyn}}
[[Category:1936 births]]
[[Category:1996 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American engineers]]
[[Category:20th-century American physicists]]
[[Category:Accidental deaths in Minnesota]]
[[Category:American test pilots]]
[[Category:American aerospace engineers]]
[[Category:Aviators from Ohio]]
[[Category:Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States]]
[[Category:Baldwin Wallace University alumni]]
[[Category:Burials at Arlington National Cemetery]]
[[Category:Engineers from Ohio]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Ohio]]
[[Category:Naval Postgraduate School alumni]]
[[Category:People from Lorain, Ohio]]
[[Category:People from Westlake, Ohio]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)]]
[[Category:Space Shuttle program astronauts]]
[[Category:United States Marine Corps astronauts]]
[[Category:United States Marine Corps colonels]]
[[Category:United States Naval Aviators]]
[[Category:U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School alumni]]
[[Category:Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1996]]
[[Category:Victims of flight test accidents]]