On January 15, 2023, Dana Andrews, loving husband, father, and Papa, passed away suddenly at the age of 78. Dana was born in Los Angeles, CA on May 26,1944 to Elden and Marcella Andrews. He attended Roosevelt High in Port Angeles, WA where he met his wife, Anne. Dana earned a BS from the University of Washington, a MS from CalTech, and a PhD from Stanford in Aeronautical Engineering.
Sir Isaac Newton, the famous English scientist, once said, “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Dana was one such giant in the aerospace industry. He worked at the Boeing Company for over 33 years, spending his first 12 years in the commercial aircraft division, and the next 21 years in the space division where he pioneered innovative concepts in design, technology, and space operations. Dana’s deep technical understanding and ability to bridge and integrate across disciplines allowed him to successfully lead teams developing launch vehicles, orbital rockets, and the space station.
In 2000, he joined his son, Jason’s company, Andrews Space. There, he spearheaded projects to commercialize space transportation. After “retiring” in 2012, Dana was overjoyed to mentor the next generation by teaching for 3 years at the University of Washington in the Aerospace Engineering Dept. In 2020, he published “Chasing the Dream,” a book chronicling the history of advanced space transportation and theorizing on our space future.
Dana loved the view from a mountain top, a good sci-fi novel, a soak in the hot tub, historic lectures, a competitive game of bridge, solving genealogical mysteries, and long weekends with his extended family. Dana and Anne had an amazing partnership and shared many adventures toge
ther, exploring virtually every continent by land and sea. When he wasn’t traveling or working, Dana was looking for his next project, whether it was cutting trail and rolling rock, rebuilding a car engine, rewiring the house, or hand-excavating a mountain cabin basement one wheelbarrow at a time. He passed on his “can do” attitude, spirit of adventure, and continual thirst for knowledge to his children and grandchildren. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Anne, sister Cyndie, and children Jason (Marian), Chris (Shane), Sarah (Greg), and John (Nancy). He has 10 grandchildren (nine girls and one boy) and one great grandchild.
Dana was revered for his intelligence but known for his kindness. He will be greatly missed.
In lieu of flowers, consider donating in Dana’s honor towards the “Dr. Dana Andrews – Chasing The Dream” scholarship, benefiting undergraduate Aeronautics and Astronautics students at the University of Washington who are pursuing careers in advanced space transportation. To learn more, visit:
