Honoree Name:
Gilbert Clark DuPre Jr.
Honoree Profile:
Born in Columbia, SC , graduated from Dreher High School, and attained a BSEE degree from Clemson College. At an early age he was exposed to WWII Aircraft at the local airport near his home. At or near age 9 he built rubber band flying airplanes and later the motorized flying U controlled planes. At Clemson, he was a member of the Air Force ROTC.
After graduating from Clemson, his first job in the aircraft industry was with North American Aviation Co. in Columbus Ohio. His main projects were assisting in design of aircraft armament systems and in-flight refueling systems for the FJ4 Navy fighter. Later, he assisted in the mockup and design of the A3J aircraft and in the development of the navigation and terrain following systems. He also worked on the development of the reconnaissance systems for the RA5C missiles.
In 1965, he joined General Electric Co. at Cape Canaveral and participated in the Apollo Mission to put a man on the moon. There, he was an Electrical Engineer responsible with others to prepare the special power systems for Grumman Aircraft Co. to be used on the first check out launch of the Lunar Module from Launch Complex 37. His next assignment was responsibility for maintaining configuaration control of the DC power systems on the NASA complex on Merritt Island, Fl. (Kennedy Space Center). He was also on stand-by for all of the Apollo launches through Apollo 12. He left Florida in 1970 and continued with General Electric as an Electrical Service and Sales Engineer until retirement in 2000. He still visits every aircraft and space museum when the opportunity presents itself.