Expanding our horizons

“Growing up in the ’50s and ’60s, when the space program was at a peak, made a huge impression on me and people in my generation,” says Jeffrey Bantle ’80. “I was also interested in science and math.”

At Ripon College, Bantle met Jeff Viken ’80. Jeff’s roommate, Al Klapmeier ’80, had his own aircraft company and a little airplane. “They often went out flying, and I went with them occasionally. That gave me a bug for flying,” Bantle says.

Bantle and Viken were roommates while pursuing master’s degrees in aerospace, aeronautical and astronautical engineering at George Washington University. They also did research at NASA Langley Research Center. While Viken remained in aeronautical research for his career at Langley, Bantle went into space flight at NASA in Houston, Texas, from 1982-2001. He was a flight director from 1990-2001, advancing to chief of the Flight Director Office for space shuttle systems in Mission Control for his last three years with NASA.

“It’s the best job I ever had,” Bantle says. “It was extremely rewarding. You start by planning a mission, executing the mission and having it be successful.”

A low point was serving during the Challenger explosion disaster in 1986.

“I lost colleagues and friends on board the space shuttle,” he says. “Most of us (at NASA) focused on the work after. There was lots of analysis to find out what happened. We spent a good year making improvements in safety and performance.”

Bantle directed 20 space shuttle missions out of the 98 launched at the time when he noticed the shuttle program was winding down. He decided to explore positions in private industry and spent the next 16 years at Lockheed Martin, where he primarily worked with the Navy and Missile Defense Agency, supplying them with airborne and shipbased combat systems.

His numerous positions there included work in the helicopter programs and as vice president and general manager of Naval Combat and Missile Defense Systems. The company equips helicopters and ships with defense capabilities. For example, ships being deployed in South Korea to defend against potential threats from North Korea are equipped with Lockheed Martin combat systems. They also have supplied navies of several foreign counties with defense capabilities. Defense-equipped helicopters also are used for humanitarian deliveries around the world. “People don’t realize how much the Navy does in respect to that, and helicopters are key to these humanitarian missions,” Bantle says.

Bantle retired last year. “It was very rewarding to work on these kinds of problems — expanding our ability to reach into space as well as working with our military to protect our fleet, country and world,” he says.

While the types of jobs Bantle has had require strong science and math skills, “you need strong communication skills, too,” he says. “Having a broad liberal arts background like Ripon provides was significant in that and allowed me to excel. I always tell folks to get a broader background like the liberal arts. I think it does make a difference.”