Robert F. Yonash (February 7, 1919 – April 19, 1997) was an American engineer in the early days of the aircraft industry. He was a member of the start-up management team for the Texas Engineering & Manufacturing Company (TEMCO), which eventually became the "T" in the conglomerate Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV). He was the co-founder, with Harold Silver, of the Intercontinental Manufacturing Company (IMCO), which is currently owned by General Dynamics.
Yonash made an important contribution to the aircraft industry after World War II by finding ways to ease the transition from wartime production to a consumer-based economy, as well as from an aircraft industry to the military-industrial complex that characterized the Cold War.
Following his career in the aircraft industry, Yonash was an entrepreneur in Sonoma County, California, for nearly forty years.
Private life
Early years Bob Yonash was the firstborn child and only son of Frank Yonash and Esther Mary Jacobsen. At the time of his birth on February 7, 1919, his parents resided on a homestead near Plevna, Montana. His mother went to her mother's home in Wadena, Minnesota, for his birth.
Yonash's father immigrated from Bohemia, which was then a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, arriving at Ellis Island on September 5, 1908. His mother descended from immigrants of Denmark and Luxembourg, who settled in Iowa and later moved to Wadena.
In 1927, the Yonash family moved to the Los Angeles, California, area where they managed an apartment house for several years before settling on a farm in Bellflower, California.
Education Yonash attended Downey high school where analytical and spherical geometry were among his favorite subjects. His least favorite topics were chemistry and physics labs.
Before he was 17 years old, he was skilled at welding aluminum, and used this expertise to repair the aluminum tail cones of racing cars, which were powered by outboard motors. A frequent driver tactic created opportunity for him to practice his welding skills. Drivers would run a car onto the tail cone of the car ahead, rendering the lead car's steering inoperative and resulting in continuous damage to the aluminum tail cones. From race cars to aircraft was a logical step.
Following high school he attended college for a year.
Marriage and family Yonash married three times. His first wife was Gwendolyn Tull, mother of his daughter Robin. She was the daughter of Frank Tull of Kansas and Zella Cox of Illinois. The marriage ended in divorce after six years. He then married Virginia Doerr, the socialite daughter of R. Edward Blaney Doerr, president of the Murray Gin Company in Dallas, and Louise Nelms. They had a son Richard. This marriage lasted until his wife's death in 1975. His final marriage, to Jan Robbins, endured until his death.
Death In early 1997, following nearly forty years as a Sonoma County entrepreneur, Bob moved to the Fircrest Convalescent Hospital in Sebastopol, California, where he died on April 19, 1997, at age 78.
Working life
Aircraft Industry Yonash got involved in the aircraft industry just as the transition from fabric and wood frames to metal was in its early stages. When he started his first job, powered flight had been a reality for less than 33 years.
Yonash recalled his start in the aircraft Industry In an oral history shortly before his death, Yonash recalled how he got his start in the aircraft industry.Robert F. Yonash Oral History, 1996
"It was the middle of the Great Depression, and I had just unloaded a boxcar load of Borax with a wheelbarrow and shovel. It took me three days and I was paid three dollars, which was a good wage for the time: one man, one day, one dollar.
"On my way home I noticed a line of men outside a factory, so I stopped and got in line as you did during the Depression. I asked one of the guys in line who was hiring and he said, “Vultee Aviation.” I thought, “What do I know about airplanes?” I did have a little experience with aluminum welding, although at the time I didn't know I couldn't have passed their certification test.
"The guy two in front of me, when asked what he was, said, “Aluminum welder.” Their response was, “Sorry, we have all the welders we need.” When they came to the guy in front of me, he said, “Sheet metal worker.” They asked, “Can you read a blueprint?” and when he said “no,” they dismissed him too.
"When they asked me, I said “I’m a sheet metal worker.” When they asked, “Can you read a blueprint?” I answered, “Of course,” which was true. After a quick test of my blueprint-reading skills, they hired me and said, “Show up Monday with your tools.” So I went home, took an empty fish tackle box, and filled it with everything that might be construed to be a sheet metal-working tool. When I showed up for work the foreman asked me, “Can you run a nibbler?” I said, “Sure, where is it?” Luckily it was a fairly simple machine for blanking sheet metal parts, and it was relatively easy to master.
"Shortly thereafter, I moved into the drop hammer department."
Vultee Airplane Development Corporation Yonash was a drop hammer operator at Vultee Airplane Development Corporation in Downey, California from May 26, 1936, to September 25, 1936.Letter from Vultee Airplane Development Corporation Personnel Department, from the Robert F. Yonash Archives This was his first job outside of the family. In May 1936, he was 17 and the Great Depression was still going on.
He began work in the aluminum stamping department. Here he worked as a drop hammer operator's assistant, The parts produced in this department were pre-formed shapes for various sections of the fuselage and wings. These sections would then be combined with other sections to complete the whole assembly.
During a discussion among workers in the Vultee stamping department a sign of Yonash's early ambition surfaced. The workers were discussing what their plans were for the future. He remained quiet for most of the conversation, When asked what his plans were, his reply was that he planned on running the place and that he would leave the company when he turned 35, This was met with laughs, and guffaws. His prediction came true. He was in his late twenties when he became a vice president. By the time he was 35 he did leave the employ of others and became a full-time entrepreneur for the rest of his life.
When he was laid off on September 25, 1936, Yonash was rated “very good” on ability, conduct, and production. He was “laid off because of lack of work,” but was marked “we would re-employ.”
Lockheed Aircraft Corporation From October 26, 1936, to March 3, 1939, Yonash worked for Lockheed at its Burbank, California plant between his two stints for Vultee. Initially, he was a Junior Drop Hammer Operator, and was promoted to Senior Drop Hammer Operator on January 22, 1937. When he left, he was rated “very good” on ability and production, but only “good” on conduct.Letter from Lockheed Aircraft Corporation Personnel Department dated March 3, 1939, from the Robert F. Yonash Archives
At Lockheed, Yonash was involved with the development of the P-38 Lightning double-tailed pursuit plane, which along with the North American P-51, was one of his proudest achievements. He designed the tooling for the P-38 wings.
Vultee Aircraft, Inc. In 1939 Yonash returned to Vultee in Downey, now known as Vultee Aircraft, Inc. He started as a Sheet Metal – Production Worker on a Drill Press, then moved up to Inspector on December 4, 1939. On June 17, 1940, he became the Tool Design Night Liaison, and then the Tool Design Liaison on July 8, 1940.Letter from Vultee Aircraft, Inc. Personnel Department, from the Robert F. Yonash Archives
American Central Manufacturing Corporation Yonash was the Chief Tool Engineer, in charge of the Tooling Department, in the Connersville, Indiana, plant of the Aircraft Division of American Central Manufacturing Corporation (AMC) from May 1, 1941, to January 31, 1944.Letter from American Central Personnel Department, from the Robert F. Yonash Archives AMC was one of many general manufacturing companies which switched their focus to subcontracting the production of materiel during World War II. He worked on the tooling for one of the wing sections of the B-24 Liberator Bomber. His department's efforts rated an article in the company newsletter.Behind the Scenes with the Tooling Department, Along the Line, January 1944 American Central Manufacturing Corporation Newsletter, retrieved on July 19, 2018 Photos and drawing of some of the tooling his department produced still survive.Photos and Drawings of Tooling for the Wings of the B-24 Bomber, Manufactured by American Manufacturing Corporation, retrieved on July 19, 2018
While he was nominally based in Indiana, AMC was only one of several subcontractors whose products had to be assembled together. Thus Yonash spent a lot of his time traveling from one company to another making sure everything was working. In his later years, he used to tell how he would carry his dirty clothes from one airline stop to the next one, where he would drop them off for cleaning and pick up the clean ones from the last time he went through there.
During this time at AMC Yonash met Art Jairett, who remained a lifelong friend.
North American Aviation, Inc.
At North American Aviation, Yonash worked in the Dallas, Texas, plant on the tooling for the P-51 Mustang wings. The challenge here was that the wings attached to the fuselage of the plane at an angle. Prior to Yonash's involvement the manufacturing and assembly process was very time consuming. With his tooling design, productivity improved significantly. Yonash worked for North American from January 1944 to July 1945.
At North American, Yonash first met Bob McCulloch, who was to remain instrumental in his career until he “retired” from working for others. Yonash and McCulloch remained friends until McCulloch's death in 1995.
Yonash was well known for doing things his own way, and one day came into work to find this cartoon on the bulletin board.
Menasco Manufacturing Company Yonash was a Department Manager for the Menasco Manufacturing Company in Burbank, California, from August 23, 1945, to January 25, 1946.Letter from Menasco Manufacturing Company Industrial Relations Department, from the Robert F. Yonash Archives
Texas Engineering & Manufacturing Company (TEMCO) Yonash was a member of the start-up management team for Texas Engineering & Manufacturing Company (TEMCO) in Dallas, Texas,TEMCO Tidings, October 6, 1946, retrieved on July 19, 2018 which was created as part of an effort to ease the transition from wartime production. He was Chief Production Engineer from January 16, 1946, to November 30, 1947.Letter from the Texas Engineering & Manufacturing Company Personnel Department dated March 8, 1948, from the Robert F. Yonash Archives On June 17, 1946, Yonash was appointed the head of the new Department 25, known as “General Products.”Internal Memo from the Texas Engineering & Manufacturing Company Personnel Department dated June 17, 1946, from the Robert F. Yonash Archives This department produced an automated popcorn machine,Brochure for 'Pop' Corn Vending Machine Manufactured by TEMCO for T. & C. Company, retrieved on July 19, 2018Photo of Exterior of 'Pop' Corn Vending Machine Manufactured by TEMCO for T. & C. Company , retrieved on July 19, 2018Photo of Interior of 'Pop' Corn Vending Machine Manufactured by TEMCO for T. & C. Company , retrieved on July 19, 2018 Venetian blind clips, and other consumer-oriented products. Later on, it also assembled the tractors for the Intercontinental Manufacturing Company (IMCO).
R.P.M. R.P.M. was a manufacturing consulting company in the Dallas, Texas, area. The letters in the company name stood for Research, Production, and Marketing. TEMCO was one of its clients.