Home > William Anders

He received a bachelor of science degree from the United States Naval Academy in 1955 and a master of science degree in nuclear engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, in 1962. Anders completed the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program in 1979.

After graduating from Annapolis, Anders took his commission in the U.S. Air Force and served as a fighter pilot in all-weather interceptor squadrons of the Air Defense Command . He was later was responsible for technical management of nuclear power reactor shielding and radiation effects programs while at the Air Force Weapons Laboratory in New Mexico.

In 1964, Anders was selected by NASA as an astronaut with responsibilities for dosimetryDosimetry is the measurement of doses in matter and tissue from ionizing radiation, or radioactivity as it is popularly known. Doses are measured in gray (Gy) for matter or Sievert (Sv) for biological tissue. The dose refers to the amount of energy or dam, radiation effects and environmental controls. He was backup pilot for the Gemini XI and Apollo 11The Apollo 11 mission was the first manned lunar landing. It was the fifth manned mission in the Apollo program. That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind. Neil Armstrong Crew Neil Armstrong (2), commander (and first to walk on the moo flights, and was lunar module pilot for Apollo 8Apollo 8 was a manned mission of the Apollo space program. Apollo 8 was the first mission that carried humans beyond Earth orbit, and the first time anyone was closer to another celestial body than they were to Earth. Crew Frank Borman (2), commander Jame, the first lunar orbit mission, in December 1968Events Undated Booker Prize for Fiction is established by Booker plc. 1968 is known as the year of the Prague Spring and also the year of the Paris riots. The ASCII character code is standardized as ANSI Standard X3. Nauru adopt his national anthem of the. He has logged more than 6,000 hours of flight time.

From June 1969For other uses, see Number 1969. For the movie, see 1969 (movie). Events January January 1 Australian media baron Rupert Murdoch purchases the largest selling British Sunday newspaper The News Of The World January 5 The Derry Riots leave over 100 people i to 1973Events January events January 1 United Kingdom, Ireland, and Denmark enter the European Economic Community now known as the European Union January 3 Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) sells the New York Yankees for $10 million to a 12-person syndicate led, he served as executive secretary for the National Aeronautics and Space Council , which was responsible to the president, vice president and Cabinet-level members of the Council for developing policy options concerning research, development, operations and planning of aeronautical and space systems.

On Aug. 6, 1973Events January events January 1 United Kingdom, Ireland, and Denmark enter the European Economic Community now known as the European Union January 3 Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) sells the New York Yankees for $10 million to a 12-person syndicate led, Anders was appointed to the five-member Atomic Energy Commission, where he was lead commissioner for nuclear and non-nuclear power R&D. He was also named as U. S. chairman of the joint US/USSR technology exchange program for fission and fusion power.

Following the reorganization of national nuclear regulatory and developmental activities on Jan. 19, 1975, Anders was named by President Ford to become the first chairman of the newly established Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which is responsible for nuclear safety and environmental compatibility. At the completion of his term as NRC Chairman, Anders was appointed ambassador to Norway and held that position until 1977, when he left the federal government after 26 years.

Anders briefly served as a fellow of the American Enterprise Institute, then joined General Electric in September 1977. As vice president and general manager of GE's Nuclear Products Division in San Jose, Calif., he was responsible for the manufacture of nuclear fuel, reactor internal equipment, and control and instrumentation for GE boiling-water reactors at facilities located in San Jose and Wilmington, N.C.. He also oversaw GE's partnership with Chicago Bridge and Iron for making large steel pressure vessels in Memphis. In August 1979, Anders was sent to attend Harvard Business School's Advanced Management Program. On the first day of 1980, Anders was appointed general manager of the General Electric Aircraft Equipment Division . Headquartered in Utica, N.Y., the division included more than 8,500 employees in five locations in the northeastern U.S. Its products included aircraft flight and weapon control systems, cockpit instruments, aircraft electrical generating systems, airborne radars and data processing systems, electronic countermeasures, space command systems, and aircraft/surface multi-barrel armament systems.

In 1984, he left GE to join Textron as executive vice president for aerospace, and two years later became senior executive vice president for operations.

In 1990, Anders became vice chairman of General Dynamics, and on Jan. 1, 1991, its chairman and CEO. He retired in 1993 but remained chairman until May 1994.

He was also a consultant to the U.S. Office of Science and Technology Policy and was a member of the Defense Science Board and the NASA Advisory Council . He is a retired major general in the USAF Reserve .

He has four sons and two daughters.