ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

            I would like to thank Dr. James C. Bradford, my committee chairman, for all of his hard work on my behalf.  After absolutely terrifying me during my first semester in graduate school, I have found him to be a man of unusual insight and patience.  Throughout the last four and half years he has provided exceptional support and advice.  He completely destroyed the first chapter I submitted and then showed me not only how it could be rebuilt but also how much more pride I could take in the product.  This work is as much a result of his labor as mine.

            I would like to thank Dr. Harold Livesay for his honesty and candor throughout the project.  I found that when I needed a voice of sanity to help me deal with a problem, Dr. Livesay was there.  He also helped to reassure me that a simple solution was not necessarily the wrong one.  I would like to thank Dr. Jonathan Coopersmith for introducing me to the history of technology and for placing some of the technical questions in perspective.  I would like to thank Dr. Peter Hugill for constantly reminding me that the United States does not exist in a vacuum and that external influences often determine internal decisions.

            From my research I am also indebted to a large number of individuals.  Rick Peuser and Becky Livingston at National Archives 1 welcomed me into their world and gave me every bit of assistance they could.  From the smallest description they seemed able to find the most obscure document with ease.  Dr. James Reckner, my mentor during my undergraduate days at Texas Tech University, supplied information and advice.  Dr. William Trimble is perhaps the most accomplished historian in naval aviation at this time and commentated on the first paper I ever presented.  He was not only exceedingly kind in his comments but also has provided additional assistance and information over the last several years.

            My father, Noble Snaples, has made his living as a mechanic with the firm conviction that neither of his sons would follow in his footsteps.  My mother, Linda Snaples, raised my brother and me on a tight budget and lots of love.  They put both of their sons through college, the first Snaples to do so.  The two of them mean more to me than anything in the world and I do not have the space or the words to thank them for all they have done for me. 

            Shawn Snaples, my wife, has endured far too much of my procrastination and has been subjected to more information about my topic than anybody really deserves.  She is the love of my life and a wonderful person.  My brother Dennis is the computer expert of the family and I have availed myself of his expertise on many occasions, most often late at night.  Thank you.  My grandmother, Helen Smith, is simply a grand woman and the baker of the finest pies anybody has ever tasted.  My grandfather, Cotton Smith, died when I was 15 but I still carry his memory and wisdom.  My Uncle Otis died in 1998, but he left me with lots of songs to sing and answered one of the basic questions of my research when I could not.

            I have abused my friends more than most during this process and I owe them much for their support.  Stephen Svonavec and David Snyder, fellow graduate students, listened to my thoughts and responded with invaluable advice and assistance.  I would also like to thank Steve for much of the legwork he has done on my behalf and Dave, his wife Joyce, and their families for their hospitality during my first research trip to Washington D.C.  Likewise I would like thank my best friend, Marshall Reeder, and his wife Melodi for letting me sleep on their floor during research, and for everything else they have done.

            While writing, I often found it therapeutic to work on a letter to a friend whenever I got stuck.  Those letters consisted of primarily of senseless ramblings, but my friends still read them and occasionally responded.  Lesley Wilson was the prime receiver of such nonsense, and not coincidentally the most likely to respond.  Also subjected to such abuse were Jennifer Price, my cousin and pseudo little sister, Amy Bell, Judy Adams, Laura Ann Lee, Kelli Mathiason, and Sheila Thornton.  I appreciate their support and tolerance of my idiosyncrasies, thank you for being my friends.

            At a barbecue the night before my wedding I forgot to thank my bother, Dennis, who had worked hardest of all to put everything together.  To avoid a repeat of that unfortunate incident, I would like to thank everybody I’ve forgotten.  Please consider it a sign of impending deadlines rather than my lack of appreciation.