Thursday, December 13, 2012

From Humble Beginnings

At Lockheed Martin you can reach the sky
by Charles S.

In 1947, having served in the Navy during World War II, I joined Lockheed Aircraft Service Company (LAS) at MacArthur Airport, Long Island, New York. I started as Class C instrument technician at the rate of 89 cents per hour. By 1978, I had advanced to LAS Executive Vice President and Lockheed Corporate Vice President.

As a LAS contract administrator, I was primary contact with presidential flight crews and United States VIP fleet (LAS was then at New York International Airport), which provided all heavy maintenance and modification to the 1254th Air Transport Wing (later designated the 89th ATG).

Starting in the1960s, I was director and vice president of international marketing. I later served as executive vice president and worked to establish and administer LAS International joint ventures and operations in various foreign locations, including Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Malaysia.

Following my retirement in 1983, I continued to serve Lockheed as a consultant for some 12 years and was involved in a number of domestic programs, as well as acquiring additional bases of operation in Hungry and Argentina.

From humble beginnings, I was blessed to be involved in great programs and unique experiences in serving Lockheed Martin, the world’s greatest aerospace company.