Overmyer, Robert F., 1936-1996

Robert Franklyn "Bob" Overmyer (b. July 14, 1936–d. March 22, 1996), (Col, USMC); American test pilot, naval aviator, aeronautical engineer, physicist, United States Marine Corps officer, and USAF/NASA astronaut; born in Lorain, Ohio, but considered Westlake, Ohio his hometown; selected by the United States Air Force as an astronaut for its Manned Orbiting Laboratory in 1966; upon cancellation of this program in 1969, became a NASA astronaut and served support crew duties for the Skylab program and Apollo-Soyuz Test Project; flew as pilot on STS-5 (Columbia, 1982), and as commander on STS-51-B (Challenger, 1985); lead investigator into the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster; retired from NASA in 1986; died in Duluth, Minnesota while testing the Cirrus VK-30 composite homebuilt aircraft, 1996.

Robert F. Overmyer; Born July 14, 1936, in Lorain, Ohio, considered Westlake, Ohio, his hometown; BS in Physics, Baldwin Wallace College, 1958, MS Aeronautics, U. S. Naval Postgraduate School, 1964; entered active duty with the Marine Corps in January 1958; chosen as an astronaut for the USAF Manned Orbiting Laboratory Program in 1966, program canceled in 1969;has over 7,500 flight hours with over 6,000 in jet aircraft; selected as a NASA astronaut, 1969, member, Skylab Program 1969-1971; support crew member for Apollo 17; support crew member for the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project; Deputy Vehicle Manager of OV-102 (Columbia, 1979); pilot for STS-5 (1982), commander of STS 51-B ( 1985); retired from NASA and the Marine Corps in May 1986; died on March 22, 1996, in the crash of a light aircraft he was testing.