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Lockheed Martin aerospace engineer and designer Willis M. Hawkins died at his home in Woodland Hills, California, on 28 September. He was ninety. Hawkins worked for Lockheed Corporation for almost fifty years, during which time he led the team that designed the C-130 Hercules airlifter in 1951. He considered the Hercules one of his greatest successes. Among his many career highlights, Hawkins oversaw development of the Polaris, the US Navy's first sea-launched ballistic missile, and headed the then-classified Corona reconnaissance satellite program. He left Lockheed briefly in 1963 to serve as assistant secretary of the Army, and he started development of what became today's M1 Abrams main battle tank. Hawkins's career was detailed in the third quarter 2004 issue of Code One.
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