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Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Sponsor

Honored by:
His son and daughter Donald Caldwell Jr. and Sandra Davis

An aviation enthusiast from childhood, Don's goal was to spend his life around airplanes. Upon graduation from high school, he enlisted in the Navy in 1944. During this stint in the Navy he served as an aircraft mechanic and gunner before being discharged in 1946 as an Aviation Machinist's Mate Third Class. He served in the Navy Reserves while attending the University of Maryland and was called to active duty twice during this time; once for five months in 1947 and then again from 1950 to 1952 as a flight engineer for flying boats, the Catalina and Mariner.
In 1955 he began working for Martin Marietta in Baltimore on a variety of projects involving airplanes, satellites, and vertical test for the Gemini rocket booster. While working at Martin Marietta he also attended night school at Johns Hopkins University, graduating with a B.S. in Physics in 1967. After Martin Marietta he took refresher courses and was certified for his Airframe and Power Plant Mechanics License. The next step in his career in aviation and aerospace took Don to Boeing Vertol in Philadelphia in 1968 where he gained more experience with helicopters.
His work at Boeing was followed by his final career move to work for the Navy at Naval Air Systems Command headquarters in Arlington in the Propulsion and Power Division, Installation and Systems Branch. From 1969 until his retirement in 1996. At NAVAIR, he worked on airframe fuel systems which required him to support virtually every aircraft in the Navy's inventory: F-14, OV0-10, A-4, A-6, F-4, F-8, H-2, S-2, S-3, TC-4, BQM-34, KC-97, T-28, T-34, and others. In 1973 he began working on an Infra Red suppression issue on the A-6A and subsequently continued to work in this area the rest of his career. He was the lead engineer for engine IR systems: AH-1, UH-1, CH-53, A-7, OV-10, CH-46, SH-2, V-22, AV-8, E-2, F-14, A-12, AX, and JSF. Throughout his career he worked diligently to ensure the weapon systems that were delivered to the fleet would perform their mission in the real environment faced by the sailors. In order to do this he became the Navy's expert in various areas such as bird strike resistance, sand ingestion, and ice accumulation. His efforts on these and other projects were " always truly outstanding and highly professional" as noted by the Commander of NAVAIR, Vice Admiral J. A. Lockard in letter of appreciation upon his retirement form the Navy Department in 1996.
Along with his professional career, Don also found time to fulfill a lifelong dream to take flying lessons and earn his private pilot's license, becoming an avid recreational pilot. In addition, Don started to volunteer with the Civil Air Patrol, first with the Chevy Chase, MD wing and then later with the Towson, MD wing. He rose through he ranks to Lieutenant Colonel, and continues with the CAP to this day. To further occupy his time in "retirement", he joined with a group of other men to restore to flying condition a World War II Navy TBM Avenger, which is now in the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum in Reading, PA. He and the other men are currently restoring another aircraft to flying condition for the museum, an AT-17 Bobcat.