Story ID: 135LynnObitAIN0717
Early Tiltrotor Pioneer Lynn Dies
By: Mark Huber
Caption: He began his career with Bell in 1950.
Word Count: 321
Robert Reid Lynn, who retired in 1991 as Bell Helicopter's senior vice president of research and engineering, has died. He passed away May 27 in Texas at the age of 90. Lynn was one of the earliest collaborators on tiltrotor design, beginning work on the Bell XV-3 in 1951. He was also instrumental in the design of the V-22 Osprey and the Huey Cobra. 

Lynn received his BS in mechanical engineering and his MS in aeronautical engineering from Princeton University. He later attended MIT’s Senior Executive Program. He joined Bell's Buffalo works as a draftsman in 1950 and transferred to the Fort Worth division in 1951. He rose through the ranks as a project engineer, chief of research and development, director of test and evaluation, and director of design during the 1970s.

Lynn was the recipient of the 1983 AHS Alexander Klemin Award and was the AHS chairman of the board (1979-1980) and chairman of the AHS Vertical Flight Foundation (1980-1981 and 1982-1983). Lynn was also the recipient (with Robert J. Tapscott) of the 1973 AHS Paul E. Haueter Award for “outstanding technical contribution to the field of vertical takeoff and landing aircraft development other than a helicopter,” as well as the 1983 AHS Harry T. Jensen Award for “outstanding contribution to the improvement of vertical flight aircraft reliability, maintainability and/or safety through improved design.” Lynn was a Fellow of the American Institute of Astronautics and Aeronautics (AIAA) and the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS). He authored 40 publications and held multiple patents.

Lynn served with NASA, the U.S. Army, the NATO Advisory Group for Aerospace Research and Development, the FAA, the White House’s Office of Science & Technology Policy’s Aeronautical Policy Review Committee, the National Research Council’s Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board, and the FAA Technical Oversight Group on Aging Aircraft (TOGAA) and he later received the FAA Award for Extraordinary Service for his participation with TOGAA.