Tom F. Drake started work at Fairchild Aircraft Missiles Division, Hagerstown, Maryland in 1941, shortly before the United States entry into World War II.

He began in the Production Department as a welder and machine operator. Next, he moved to the Engineering Department where he was the Liaison between the Engineering, Tooling, and Production Departments.

Tom then spent 20 years in the Quality Control Department. His work there included the inspection of metal processing, machine parts, and assembly. He conducted welder and tensile testing machine certifications as well as the inspection and calibration of precision tools and optical equipment. While there, Tom was also responsible for the inspection of Machine Tools, Dies, Assembly Tools, and Tooling Templates used for the manufacture and assembly of aircraft and missiles.

He was in a supervisory capacity for 17 or those 20 years starting as a Foreman of Tool Inspection and ending as the Supervisor in Charge of Tool Inspection, Receiving Inspection, Shipping Inspection and one division of Precision Parts Inspection, as well as being the Chief Engineer of Tool Design and the Chief of the Test Lab.

Programs which Tom was partial or total responsibility for Tooling Quality Include:
Fairchild's PT-19 (Aircraft), C-82 (Aircraft), C-119 (Aircraft), C-123 (Aircraft), F-27 (Aircraft), DS-5, and M.M.C. program.
Martin's PBM-1 Mariner (Patrol Bomber Flying Boat) and Titan III (missile)
Sikorsky C-53 H (Helicopter)
Bendix RIM-8 Talos (Surface-to-Air Missile)
Boeing B-52 (Bomber) and B-727 (Commercial Aircraft)
Raytheon Antenna Program
General Electric Antenna Program