Obituary

Willie Turner

Stanley Hiller, Jr. 1924-2006

Stanley Hiller Jr., age 81, died peacefully at home on Thursday, April 20, 2006, of complications associated with Alzheimer's Disease.

Stanley Hiller was born November 15, 1924 in San Francisco, California. He began his career as one of the world's three principal developers of vertical flight while still a teenager. Hiller innovations in the technology of vertical flight included the first helicopter flown in the western United States, the world's first successful co-axial helicopter, the famed Flying Platform, the one-man foldable Rotorcycle, the unique Hornet helicopter powered by rotor-tip-mounted ramjet engines, and the first high-speed vertical take-off-and-landing tilt-wing troop transport.

Hiller started the Hiller Aircraft Corporation in 1949. A formalisation of the original United Helicopters started when Hiller was 18 years old. HAC was soon producing the first battlefield evacuation helicopters for the French Indochinese War and the Korean Conflict.

After leaving Fairchild Hiller Corp in 1966, Stanley Hiller created The Hiller Group, utilizing his leadership concepts to turn around failing companies in diverse fields, including Reed Tool Company, Bekins Corp., and the huge York International air conditioning manufacturer. His efforts were responsible for a transformation of Baker International into its...