Adrain P. O'Neal

Adrain P. O’Neal Spartanburg, SC- Adrain P. O'Neal passed away at the age of 90, on Tuesday, May 24, 2016. He was born in Gulfport, MS on July 11, 1925 and graduated from Gulfport high school in 1943. Adrain tried to enlist in the Army Air Corps, but his eyesight was unacceptable, so he ate carrots and drank carrot juice to improve his eyesight, without success. He went into the U.S. Army in 1943 and received advanced infantry training at Ft. Benning, GA. Adrain was transferred to the South Pacific in 1945, assigned to the infantry division that invaded Okinawa, where the last great battle of World War II was fought. He attended Mississippi State College on the G.I. Bill. Adrain graduated in 1949 and married Elizabeth Stringer in September of that year. They went to Georgia Tech for his Master's program in Aeronautical Engineering. In 1950, they left Georgia to go to Douglas Aircraft in Southern California where he worked for his entire 40 year career. Adrain was a true rocket scientist and space pioneer. He initially worked on the Nike Ajax and Nike Hercules missiles, designed to intercept enemy bombers. Adrain then worked on the Thor Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile, brought from concept to operation in eighteen months. He was promoted in 1961 to one of three Design Engineers on the Saturn S-IV Program. When the first flight vehicle left Huntington Beach, CA, Adrain was assigned responsibility for system testing at Sacramento and followed the vehicle to Cape Canaveral as Chief Engineer. The flight was a success and was the first liquid hydrogen/ liquid oxygen stage to fly. He came back to California as Design Engineer on the S-IVB Program. S-IVB was the third stage of the Saturn V moon rocket, the most powerful rocket ever built. The astronauts were inserted into earth orbit with the S-IVB, and it was the first stage re-started in orbit to provide the velocity for translunar injection. Since the S-IVB had the same velocity as the astronauts, it was directed to impact the moon rather than stay in orbit. Geologists sent instruments to the moon to help determine interior makeup of the moon from the impact. After the Saturn moon program, Adrain went over as Chief Engineer of the Delta launch vehicle, the workhorse of Huntington Beach's efforts, launching NASA and Defense Satellites. Adrain was asked to move to Huntsville, Alabama, to oversee the construction of the new facility at this location as Vice President and General Manager of McDonnell-Douglas in Huntsville. The prime contract was Spacelab, designed by the European Space Agency. He coordinated efforts with the European Space Agency to insure that the Spacelab was properly installed in the Space Shuttle Orbiter. Adrain retired in1990 and he and wife Liz moved to Florida and then eventually to Spartanburg, SC to be closer to his family. Adrain was preceded in death by his parents, a brother, a sister, and the love of his life, Elizabeth Stringer O'Neal, who was by his side for 65 years. He is survived by his daughter, Susan O'Neal Jennings (Kevin), brother, Donald W. O'Neal (Jean), and grandchildren, Michael, Shannon, and Conor. Known to his grandchildren as Papa, Adrain devoted his “golden years” to his family, although he did find time to sneak in an occasional round on golf, his favorite recreational activity. Although Adrain was an accomplished baseball player as a young man, his professional baseball career came to an end when he lost his shortstop position on the Army baseball team to future hall of famer, Phil Rizzuto. “Ade” had many friends throughout the country. He had a knack for making anyone he came in contact with feel special. A celebration of Adrain’s life will be held at Summit Hills, 2:00 PM on Saturday, June 4, 2016. Graveside services with military honors will be held at a later date in Floral Hills Memorial Gardens in Gulfport, MS, officiated by Reverend John McCay. In lieu of flowers memorials can be sent to The Spartanburg Regional Hospice, 120 Heywood Ave, Suite 300, Spartanburg, SC 29302 or the Spartanburg County Young Life organization, P O Box 1314, Spartanburg, SC 29304.