WASHINGTON -- Maxwell W. Hunter, a visionary rocketeer, has died. For some five decades -- as a consummate engineer, project manager, and policy advisor -- Hunter steadfastly contributed to shaping the nation's rocket programs and the future of space transportation.
Hunter passed away November 10 in the San Francisco Bay area, dying of a lingering set of health issues. He was 79 years of age.
Working for Douglas Aircraft Company from 1944 to 1961, Hunter led the design of the Nike antiaircraft missile, the air-to-air Sparrow missile, and the Honest John artillery rocket.
In late 1955, Douglas Aircraft began work on the Thor Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile. Hunter was put in charge of that effort, assembling a lean and mean team of engineers to move the rocket from drawing board to reality in a short period of time. The Thor rocket evolved into the venerable McDonnell Douglas Delta rocket - still in operation today and a major workhorse in lofting payloads into orbit.
Hunter spent several years on the professional staff of an advisory group to the President, the National Aeronautics and Space Council. Following that tenure, he went back to the aerospace industry, spending over two decades with the Lockheed Missiles and Space Company.
Starting back in the late 1950's, the visionary engineer began advocated the creation of single-stage-to-orbit (SSTO) vehicles. Hunter was the brainchild of various concepts for reusable SSTO ideas. One version, the SpaceShip Experimental (SSX) can be directly linked to the McDonnell Douglas Delta Clipper-Experimental, or DC-XA. Hunter served on the DC-XA team.
Built in twenty-two months under sponsorship of the Strategic Defense Initiative Organization, the DC-XA first flew in 1993, followed by similar up-and-down test hops until 1995. NASA oversaw flights of the craft until mid-1996.
DC-XA helped validate concepts of reusability and quick turnaround, much like the airliner of today.
"I considered Max a friend and a mentor, as well as very valuable part of our team. He brought to the table a wealth of historical and background information. He was always questioning decisions, not from an arrogant standpoint, but from a wish to go back and relook at the problem," said William Gaubatz, who was the DC-XA program manager for McDonnell Douglas, and now President of Space Available, LLC, in Newport Beach, California.
"He was constantly seeking the truth and always had the long-term results of the project in mind. We all learned from Max. He never lost his zest, spirit, and drive," Gaubatz told SPACE.com.
"Max knew the rocket business better than anyone," said Rich Pournelle of XCOR Aerospace of Mojave, California. "The Thor became the basis for the Delta and many other designs borrowed from it," he said.
Pournelle said that stories about Max swirled around his past. "When they launched the first Thor, the guidance immediately went wrong. The rocket started tumbling end over end. Max went over to his structures engineer and started yelling at him because the rocket didn't break up as it spun out of control. 'I told you there was more margin in the design than you needed,' Max yelled. He was always the engineer."
"A friend of mine said that Max didn't die. Rather, he 'staged'. I am sure Max would appreciate the humor," Pournelle said.
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