Thomas Melvin Hemphill designed airplanes for Convair in San Diego. He was instrumental in the design of 18 different aircraft and was the Chief Project Engineer at the San Diego plant in 1944 and 1945. He graduated from Cornell University in 1931. He was a volunteer satellite tracker. He ran the radio telescope in Borrego on Clark Dry Lake. The San Diego Union ran articles about his satellite data on a regular basis, so San Diegans could see the satellites pass over head nightly. Tom was also a Cub Scout Leader and Boy Scout assistant and he set up Tom Hemphill's Technical Toys and sold educational toys through the local hobby shop. He was also a member of the local Radio Amateur Clubs - "HAMS", which helped to provide a network of potential emergency people during WWII. He was a Lambda Chi member while at Cornell, and aided his professor, K.D. Wood, in writing his first textbook on aeronautical engineering, while he was still in college. He also assisted with subsequent volumnes and is named in the credits. Tom was also very skilled at playing the saxophone and playing golf, and he had many golf trophies from California, New York, Florida, etc. He was also a very loving and devoted father and spent time with his children teaching them things that he felt were important. He was a member of the Mission Hills United Methodist Church in San Diego.
Thomas was born in Hattiesburg, Perry County, Mississippi. Hattiesburg is now is Forrest County, Mississippi.
Thomas was named after his grandfather, who was also Thomas Melvin Hemphill.
Note: The picture at upper left is Tom, sitting on the edge of the cockpit of the XF92A, which was the experimental model
of the F102 and F102A Jet Airplanes. This X-plane now sits in the Museum at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio.
In the cockpit is Test Pilot Bill Martin. Tom was the Preliminary Design Engineer on the F102. It was Tom who saw to it that the XF92A x-plane was able to fly, by running it through wind tunnels, changing the engine, correcting design flaws, etc. Unfortunately, he passed away before the awards were given to people, who had worked on the plane. He was recognized in the Sept 1950 issue of National Geographics and in Skyways Magazine May 1952, with his picture and the air plane in both, and in Air Force pictures with the plane, like the one on the right.
See the picture on the lower left. Dad is tracking satellites with Dr. Donald Conover (in front) and others. Dr. Donald Conover was Convair's Liason to NASA.
Thomas was born in Hattiesburg, Perry County, Mississippi. Hattiesburg is now is Forrest County, Mississippi.
Thomas was named after his grandfather, who was also Thomas Melvin Hemphill.
Note: The picture at upper left is Tom, sitting on the edge of the cockpit of the XF92A, which was the experimental model
of the F102 and F102A Jet Airplanes. This X-plane now sits in the Museum at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio.
In the cockpit is Test Pilot Bill Martin. Tom was the Preliminary Design Engineer on the F102. It was Tom who saw to it that the XF92A x-plane was able to fly, by running it through wind tunnels, changing the engine, correcting design flaws, etc. Unfortunately, he passed away before the awards were given to people, who had worked on the plane. He was recognized in the Sept 1950 issue of National Geographics and in Skyways Magazine May 1952, with his picture and the air plane in both, and in Air Force pictures with the plane, like the one on the right.
See the picture on the lower left. Dad is tracking satellites with Dr. Donald Conover (in front) and others. Dr. Donald Conover was Convair's Liason to NASA.
Thomas Melvin Hemphill designed airplanes for Convair in San Diego. He was instrumental in the design of 18 different aircraft and was the Chief Project Engineer at the San Diego plant in 1944 and 1945. He graduated from Cornell University in 1931. He was a volunteer satellite tracker. He ran the radio telescope in Borrego on Clark Dry Lake. The San Diego Union ran articles about his satellite data on a regular basis, so San Diegans could see the satellites pass over head nightly. Tom was also a Cub Scout Leader and Boy Scout assistant and he set up Tom Hemphill's Technical Toys and sold educational toys through the local hobby shop. He was also a member of the local Radio Amateur Clubs - "HAMS", which helped to provide a network of potential emergency people during WWII. He was a Lambda Chi member while at Cornell, and aided his professor, K.D. Wood, in writing his first textbook on aeronautical engineering, while he was still in college. He also assisted with subsequent volumnes and is named in the credits. Tom was also very skilled at playing the saxophone and playing golf, and he had many golf trophies from California, New York, Florida, etc. He was also a very loving and devoted father and spent time with his children teaching them things that he felt were important. He was a member of the Mission Hills United Methodist Church in San Diego.
Thomas was born in Hattiesburg, Perry County, Mississippi. Hattiesburg is now is Forrest County, Mississippi.
Thomas was named after his grandfather, who was also Thomas Melvin Hemphill.
Note: The picture at upper left is Tom, sitting on the edge of the cockpit of the XF92A, which was the experimental model
of the F102 and F102A Jet Airplanes. This X-plane now sits in the Museum at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio.
In the cockpit is Test Pilot Bill Martin. Tom was the Preliminary Design Engineer on the F102. It was Tom who saw to it that the XF92A x-plane was able to fly, by running it through wind tunnels, changing the engine, correcting design flaws, etc. Unfortunately, he passed away before the awards were given to people, who had worked on the plane. He was recognized in the Sept 1950 issue of National Geographics and in Skyways Magazine May 1952, with his picture and the air plane in both, and in Air Force pictures with the plane, like the one on the right.
See the picture on the lower left. Dad is tracking satellites with Dr. Donald Conover (in front) and others. Dr. Donald Conover was Convair's Liason to NASA.
Thomas was born in Hattiesburg, Perry County, Mississippi. Hattiesburg is now is Forrest County, Mississippi.
Thomas was named after his grandfather, who was also Thomas Melvin Hemphill.
Note: The picture at upper left is Tom, sitting on the edge of the cockpit of the XF92A, which was the experimental model
of the F102 and F102A Jet Airplanes. This X-plane now sits in the Museum at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio.
In the cockpit is Test Pilot Bill Martin. Tom was the Preliminary Design Engineer on the F102. It was Tom who saw to it that the XF92A x-plane was able to fly, by running it through wind tunnels, changing the engine, correcting design flaws, etc. Unfortunately, he passed away before the awards were given to people, who had worked on the plane. He was recognized in the Sept 1950 issue of National Geographics and in Skyways Magazine May 1952, with his picture and the air plane in both, and in Air Force pictures with the plane, like the one on the right.
See the picture on the lower left. Dad is tracking satellites with Dr. Donald Conover (in front) and others. Dr. Donald Conover was Convair's Liason to NASA.
