Gerhard Neumann
| Gerhard Neumann | |
|---|---|
| Born |
October 8, 1917 Frankfurt (Oder), Germany |
| Died | November 2, 1997 (aged 80) |
| Occupation | executive, engineer |
| Spouse(s) | Clarice Neumann |
| Awards | Daniel Guggenheim Medal (1979) |
Gerhard Neumann (October 8, 1917 – November 2, 1997) was a German-American aviation engineer and executive for General Electric's aircraft engine division (which today is called GE Aviation). Born and raised in Germany, he went to China shortly before World War II and ended up being an aircraft mechanic for the United States Army Air Forces there. He became an American citizen by an Act of Congress and went on to a career in the aerospace manufacturing industry.
Neumann was born in Frankfurt (Oder) in the Prussian Province of Brandenburg. His parents Siegfried and Frieda were non-practicing "Jewish Germans". As a teenager, Neumann apprenticed under a master auto mechanic, surnamed Schroth, who followed the traditional Prussian lifestyle of "First the work, then the pleasure." In 1935, Neumann entered the well-regarded technical college Ingenieurschule Mittweida and earned very high grades. With other students from the college, he learned to construct and pilot a one-person glider. His experience as an engine mechanic, an aircraft designer, and as a practical engineer would prove very useful in his career.
The winds of war were growing in Nazi Germany, and alliances were murky and shifting. In late 1938, Neumann saw a bulletin board posting at Mittweida saying that Chinese Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek needed engineers in his fight against Japanese invaders. Engineers who got the jobs would receive deferment from conscription into the German army. Neumann decided to leave his family and embark on a long journey to the British colony of Hong Kong in May 1939. But upon arriving in Hong Kong, he found that the company for which he was to work for had disappeared. Fortunately, his skills as an auto mechanic were in great demand.
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