Donald Capatosto

I've sent you a picture and, I'm sure you will not recognize me. You remember, I was this beautiful adonos with the great body and the beautiful hair and.......well, almost.

Sorry guys I won't be going to the reunion......I'd be embarrassed, I'm a shell of the guy I was. But, I tell you this, the more photos I see of you guys in the old days, the more I would be in the state of shock as to what we all look like now.

I would appreciate any photos (identifying who is who) of the reunion although, I'm sure I will be very upset......MY body has aged as much as anyone but my mind is still eighteen years old. It was preserved by all that alcohol.

God bless you all, you are all in my prayers - enjoy yourselves and: "HAVE ONE FOR THE GYPPER!" Errr....Excuse me, I mean, have one for "The Bird"



















PERSONAL:

I was married.

I have five children, Michael, Steven, Jennifer, Richard and Juliana.

Stayed a few years, married a Chinese Gal, was married for about 30+ years and separated in Aug. 04. Now I'm in California, in Saratoga. I've got 5 kids, about 6 or 7 grand kids....maybe 8.

EDUCATION :

Donald Francis Capatosto, D. Francis Capatosto,

Graduated from Saint Francis Preparatory School, NY in 1953

Graduated Parks College of Saint Louis University in 1956

BS in Aeronautics: Major in AME, Minor in Philosophy

EXPERIENCE

I went to work at Mac for about three months and then went into the US Navy and was deployed to Patuxent River Naval Air Test Center. I spent two years there and then went to work at Lockheed Missile and Space Co. in Sunnyvale Ca. for four years. Then went to Grumman in NY and worked for four years on the LEM program as a rocket propulsion expert (liquids and solids). From there to South East Asia with the 'company' in an outfit call: "Air Asia Co. Ltd. It would be familiar to you as: "Air America". Was up in Taipei City headquarters, Taiwan.

56 - 57: Spent time concurrently at Ozark Airlines (with Jose Hizon) and Mac Donnell Aircraft in St. Louis, Mo.

57 – 59: Flight Test Engineer on the F8U, A4D, A4D JATO and F111F aircraft at Patuxent River Naval Air Test Center, Maryland. Meet a few of the astronauts who were flight test pilots at the time.

59 – 64: Lockheed Missile and Space Division in Sunnyvale California on the Samos, Midas and Discoverer programs, in the evaluation and analysis of the Rocket Propulsion and Space Capsule Recovery Systems. First recoverable U.S. satellite from orbit, Discoverer number 13. Invented CALIPAC, Capillary Liquid Packaging.

64 – 66 Grumman Aircraft in Bethpage, NY on the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM) program, in the evaluation and selection of the LEM descent engine, the first successful variable thrust rocket engine. It was a STL (Space Technology Laboratory) design that won over Rocketdyne. Developed an equation for determining Specific Impulse (a measure of rocket engine performance).

66 – 67 Provided engineering support throughout SEA (Savanakhet, Udon, Vientiane, Plain of Jars, Laos and Cambodia; was one hundred miles from Hanoi – but never in Vietnam) for ‘The Company’ aircraft used in the counter insurgency efforts in SEA. Stationed at headquarters in Taipei City, Taiwan at Air Asia Company Ltd. Crashed landed four times. The Bird was rocked.

68 – 95 Employed with the U.S. Federal Government; retired in 1995.