Dick Mulready

Richard C. & rdquo;Dick” Mulready spent almost four decades developing advanced engines at the Research Laboratory and the Pratt & Whitney Aircraft division of United Aircraft during the exciting era when development of the staged combustion high-pressure engine transformed the Space Shuttle from idea to reality. He was the first project engineer for the RL 10 liquid hydrogen rocket engine which, over the last 45 years, has launched most large satellites and space vehicles. Dick was born on July 15, 1925, and graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Tecimology in February 1946 as an aeronautical engineer (engines option). He attended college under the auspices of the U.S. Navy V12 program and was mustered out in July 1946. With a lifelong interest in aircraft engines and a favorable bent toward Pratt & Whitney, Dick’s only college interview was with United Aircraft Corporation, of which Pratt & Whitney was a division. Dick joined the United Aircraft Research Laboratory in November 1946 and enjoyed a 37-year career there. The first 25 years of his career and the challenging state-of-the-art aircraft engine development projects on which he worked are the subject of this book. Dick has authored or co-authored several technical papers, and he holds eight patents. In 1974, he shared the Goddard Award for his early work with liquid hydrogen rocket engines. Over the years, he has been a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers and the American Rocket Society, and an associate fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. His paper, “Space Transport Engines,” found inAppendix B of this book, described at that time his view of what he believed the next generation of rocket engines would be. The paper was adopted by NASA for the Space Shuttle. In addition to his love of aircraft engines, Dick is an avid fan of sailing. He admits, “For some people, cruising on a small boat is an enjoyable occasional pastime. For me, it is an addiction.” Dick and his wife Carol have owned a variety of boats during their 45-year marriage and have