Robert M. Wood

Biography

Robert (Bob) M. Wood, aerospace engineer at Douglas Aircraft and McDonnell Douglas and long-time MUFON director of research, is the person described by the AIAA Bulletin obituary and the JSE memorial; both give the same career and an age of 96.1

Born on April 4, 1928 in Ithaca, New York (spelled "Ithica" in the source), according to the JSE memorial, which relays details shared by his son.2 Attributed

The AIAA obituary and the JSE memorial give his age at death as 96.3 Attributed

Died on August 26, 2024, as his son informed the SSE (JSE memorial); the AIAA obituary gives "26 August" under a heading dated August 2024.4 Attributed

Aerospace engineer and physicist: B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering and Ph.D. in Physics, then 1956 onwards at Douglas Aircraft and its successors.5 Attributed

Received a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the University of Colorado in 1949 and a Ph.D. in Physics from Cornell University in 1953.6 Attributed

Worked for General Electric Aeronautics and Ordnance early in his career, followed by two years in the U.S. Army at Aberdeen Proving Ground.7 Attributed

Joined Douglas Aircraft in 1956, which later became McDonnell Douglas and then Boeing, "where he spent 43 years" (both sources use this wording).8 Attributed

Retired in 1993, according to both sources. 1956 to 1993 is 37 years, which does not match the "43 years" given in the same texts; the sources do not explain the difference.9 Attributed

His aerospace work is described as including the thermodynamics of missile cooling, managing independent research and development projects, "antigravity research and investigations", radars to discriminate Soviet ballistic missiles from decoys, contributions to the (International) Space Station and promoting the Delta launch vehicle. The sources do not describe results of the antigravity work.10 Attributed

His interest in UFOs began in the late 1960s when he led a proprietary project aimed at understanding UFOs, called "Boys in the Back Room" (BITBR), which employed Stanton Friedman. The sources do not name the company in that sentence; it follows the Douglas/McDonnell Douglas career paragraph.11 Attributed

After his retirement in 1993 he became deeply involved in the forensics of authenticating the "Majestic-12" UFO documents. This records his activity only; the authenticity of the documents is not assessed here.12 Attributed

Long-time Director of Research for the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON); no years are given.13 Attributed

The JSE memorial says he served as a physics consultant for APRO. The AIAA text instead reads "served on the Board of Directors for MUFON the Aerial Phenomena Research Organization", which appears garbled; the two versions are recorded as alternatives.14 Attributed

The AIAA obituary says he "served on the Board of Directors for MUFON the Aerial Phenomena Research Organization"; a word appears to be missing, so which board is meant is unclear.15 Attributed

Counselor to the Society for Scientific Exploration, as stated in the Society's journal. The sentence is part of the family-supplied account (the AIAA text repeats it), so it is attributed rather than treated as the Society's own membership record.16 Attributed

AIAA Associate Fellow, as the heading of the AIAA's own bulletin obituary states. The obituary body does not repeat the grade.17

Both texts say he was a member of AIAA "since 1947". The phrase belongs to the family-supplied account, and 1947 predates both his 1949 B.S. and the 1963 formation of the AIAA; the sources do not explain this (a predecessor society may be meant).18 Attributed

Both texts credit him with "the groundbreaking 1968 AIAA talk" "Giant Discoveries of Future Science" and numerous articles on UFOs. The 1968 date is unconfirmed: a search index describes a document of that title in the CIA reading room (CIA-RDP96-00789R003000020013-3) as a 1982 talk by Dr. Bob Wood of McDonnell Douglas Astronautics, but the scanned document could not be read.19 Attributed

Authored, edited and contributed to several books; the JSE memorial names Alien Viruses (2013), Selected by Extraterrestrials (2015) by Bill Tompkins and the Encyclopedia of Flying Saucers (2023) by Vernon Bowen, without saying which role he had in each.20 Attributed

Involved in UFO research from the late 1960s (BITBR project), long-time MUFON director of research, and listed antigravity research among his aerospace projects.21 Attributed