June 17, 2026
History
AEDC at 75: AEDC dedicates lake in honor of Col. Woods
BRAD HICKS AEDC Contributor For more than 70 of Arnold Engineering Development Complex’s 75 years, Woods Reservoir has bore the name of a man who had a hand in its…
AEDC at 75: Early attention focuses on AEDC Lake
Once the Elk River Dam project was completed, the extent to which the public could utilize the new manmade lake it created became a topic of discussion. Following the completion…
AEDC at 75: Sverdrup leads ARO through early years
BRAD HICKS AEDC Contributor Maj. Gen. Leif Sverdrup was once quoted as saying, “If at first you don’t succeed, you’re like most people. The wonderful challenge of life is enjoyable.”…
AEDC at 75: ARO lands first AEDC contract
BRAD HICKS AEDC Contributor Air Force officials determined in 1950 that the retention of expertise and test facility familiarity at its new Arnold Engineering Development Center would be better achieved…
AEDC at 75: Carroll takes command of AEDC
BRAD HICKS AEDC Contributor In November 1950, Maj. Gen. Franklin O. Carroll moved the Air Engineering Development Division he commanded from Ohio to Northern Field near Tullahoma. The following year,…
AEDC at 75: Carroll promotes testing center
BRAD HICKS AEDC Contributor When the Air Force needed someone to lead the new Arnold Engineering Development Center through its earliest of days, it looked no further than one of…
AEDC at 75: AEDC-related activity, growth continue
BRAD HICKS AEDC Contributor In June 1952, it was announced that Air Force and Arnold Research Organization offices would begin transitioning from Northern Field to the Arnold Engineering Development Center…
AEDC at 75: Air Force, middle Tennessee prepare for AEDC
BRAD HICKS AEDC Contributor The months, weeks and days leading up to and following the June 25, 1951, dedication of the Arnold Engineering Development Center were teeming with conjecture, planning…
AEDC at 75: Truman dedicates AEDC
BRAD HICKS AEDC Contributor On the morning of June 25, 1951, then-U.S. President Harry S. Truman arrived in middle Tennessee. His plane, the Independence, which was the 1950s version of…
AEDC at 75: Groundwork begins
BRAD HICKS AEDC Contributor On Oct. 27 and 28, 1949, then-President Harry S. Truman signed the Unitary Wind Tunnel Plan Act of 1949. The first bill authorized a unitary plan…