Terrell Yon, Jr

Ted Yon was born June 2,1928 to Ted and Catherine Yon in Knoxville, Tennessee. During the Depression the family moved to College Park, Georgia where Ted grew up. As a young boy, Ted developed a deep and lifelong passion for aviation. As a youth Ted soloed at the Atlanta Airport in a Taylorcraft, having not yet gotten a drivers license and completed his Pilots Certificate at age 16. After graduation from the Georgia Military Academy in East Point, Georgia, Ted matriculated to the Georgia Institute of Technology Guggenheim School of Aeronautics in Atlanta where he completed a Bachelors degree in Aeronautical Engineering, later completing a Bachelors in Industrial Engineering. A short stay at the Plantation Pipeline was followed by work assignments as an Aeronautical Engineer with Lockheed Aircraft in Marietta Georgia and Burbank, California, and at Avco Aerospace in Nashville, Tennessee and Cape Canaveral, Florida. Ted worked on the Apollo Program with North American Rockwell at the height of the race to the Moon. Following these positions Ted moved to work with RCA Aerospace in the design of tethered lighter-than-air craft and became the preeminent aeronautical designer in this technology. Ted was the developer of the Class 4 Aerostat and holds a patent for the design. Ted was recognized as an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Following his retirement from industry Ted launched into the design and construction of Experimental Aircraft. Ted was the owner and pilot of several aircraft including a Globe Swift, an Ercoupe, a Stinson V-77 Gullwing Reliant, a Piper Cherokee and the Rutan designed Long-EZ that he constructed from raw material and plans. Ted was a licensed Airframe and Powerplant mechanic and FAA Designated Engineering Representative. Ted was a member of the Experimental Aircraft Association for more that 50 years and a Technical Counselor for other builders. Ted held numerous leadership positions in EAA Chapter 724. Ted was a follower of Jesus Christ and a believer in limited government and conservative principles. Ted was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 42 years, Sidney Kendrick Yon. He is survived by a brother William Abbott Yon of Chelsea, Alabama, a son, Terrell H Yon III of Orlando, a daughter, Sidney Aston Yon Sedlack of Jupiter, Florida, a daughter, Martha Yon Moked, of Wilmington, Delaware and 4 grandchildren, Michael and Julia Sedlack, and Benjamin and Claire Moked. Visiting Hours on Friday evening January 29 from 5-7 PM at Beckman-Williamson Funeral Home, 101 North Brevard Avenue, Cocoa Beach FL. Funeral services on Saturday January 30 2010 at 10 AM at the First United Methodist Church of Cocoa Beach, 3300 North Atlantic Avenue Cocoa Beach FL. Ted will be interred in Christian Burial in Westview Cemetery in Atlanta Georgia. Donations in lieu of flowers may be made to Servant Air Ministries, 3000 N. Atlantic Ave, Suite 102 Cocoa Beach, FL 32931