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New historical marker honors Dr. McCormick

A new historical marker erected by the Penn State Alumni Association commemorates a pioneering aeronautical research project in the College of Engineering. It reads: "In 1965, Penn State aerospace engineer Barnes W. McCormick led a research team that made the first measurements of the details of wake turbulence behind a full-scale airplane. These measurements, using aircraft flown at University Park Airport, were instrumental in setting the separation distances between aircraft operating in and out of airports worldwide, distances codified today in FAA and international regulations." The marker, located in Foundry Park, is dedicated to Barnes McCormick, Boeing professor emeritus of aerospace engineering, and his research team.

In 1965, with the help of five master's students and one doctoral student, McCormick began his groundbreaking research on wake turbulence at the University Park Airport. McCormick credits former students Hal Sherrieb (B.S. '65, M.S. '67) and Jim Tangler (M.S. '66) with major contributions to this research. The goal of the research was to determine the size of a vortex coming off a wing, in order to ensure a safe flying distance between aircraft. By placing instrumentation on a runway, the team was able to take the first measurements of vortices coming off the wings of a low-flying single-engine airplane. "The most important part was retrieving the measurements of how quickly the vortices decayed," he said. McCormick and his team soon realized that their measurements of the vortices contradicted the research available at the time. The team's results quickly sparked the interest of the FAA. They recruited McCormick to reproduce the work, but on a much larger scale. His previous results stood true and were later used in setting separation distances of aircrafts at airports around the world. McCormick's research on wake turbulence in the mid 1960s led to a long and fulfilling career in the aeronautics field. After presenting at a Washington, D.C. symposium on wake turbulence to a room full of attorneys eager to sue the FAA for flight safety negligence McCormick accomplished another first. He was the first to offer expert testimony in a wake turbulence accident case and has since testified in more than 60 aircraft accident cases. The aeronautical engineer has even co-authored a book about his experiences on these cases, along with two other books on aerodynamics. In 1990, McCormick officially retired from the University and was named Boeing Professor Emeritus. He is still an active consultant to many legal firms, government and industrial organizations.

McCormick said he is thankful and honored to have an everlasting acknowledgment of his achievements at the University. "The sight of my colleagues and family surrounding the historical marker to celebrate my work brought a tear to my eye," McCormick said. If you find yourself on campus, look for the marker behind the Hammond Building, in Foundry Park.