728 
Vehicles, Platforms, and Equipment. He is a Patron Member and President of 
the Marine Technology Society and Councilor to the MTS San Francisco Bay 
Area Section. He served as consultant to the National Council on Marine Re- 
sources and Engineering Development and was a member of the Panel on Ocean 
Engineering. He also served as a consultant to the President’s Commission on 
Marine Science, Hngineering, and Resources. He is a national Director of the 
American Ordnance Association and a Director of the AOA San Francisco Chap-- 
ter; a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science; 
and a member of the American Oceanic Organization. 
Mr. Wheaton graduated from Pomona College, majoring in Physics. He is. 
also a graduate of the Executive Management Program of the UCLA School of 
eases Administration. He is a registered professional engineer in the state 
of California. 
STATEMENT OF ELMER P. WHEATON, VICE PRESIDENT, LOCKHEED 
AIRCRAFT CORP.; PRESIDENT, MARINE TECHNOLOGY SOCIETY; 
AND CHAIRMAN, PANEL ON VEHICLES, PLATFORMS, AND EQUIP- 
MENT, COMMITTEE ON OCEAN ENGINEERING, NATIONAL ACAD- 
EMY OF ENGINEERING 
Mr. Wueaton. Thank you, sir. 
Mr. Lennon. Go right ahead. 
Mr. Wuraron. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee: Tam 
delighted to have the opportunity to appear before you today. I hope 
I can contribute to your deliberations on the report of the Commis- 
sion on Marine Science, Engineering and Resources and the future 
commitment of the United States in the marine environment. At the 
outset, may I point out that T appear here as an individual and that 
any opinions which I express are my personal views and not neces- 
sarily those of Lockheed Aircraft Corporation, the Marine Tech- 
nology Society, or the National Academy of Engineering Committee 
on Ocean Engineering. I have given you my biographical sketch. 
As one who has been intimately associated with the early develop- 
ment of the aircraft, missiles, space, and ocean fields, I should like 
to offer an engineer’s view of the commission’s work. J, too, believe 
that a major reorganization of marine affairs is required within the 
U.S. Government. 
THE UNDERDEVELOPED RESOURCES OF THE OCEANS 
Through its report “Our Nation and the Sea,” in addition to its 
panel reports, the commission performed an excellent service in pre- 
senting the problems and promises of the oceans and in proposing a 
course of action by which we as a nation could reap the benefits of 
these vast underdeveloped resources. 
We have hardly begun to harvest the resources of the seven-tenths 
of the area of the earth which lies under water. The potential is so 
great that the future well-being of our Nation may well be at stake 
if we do not move in this direction. 
ROLE OF THE OCEAN ENGINEER 
The role of an ocean engineer is to render the marine environment 
routinely and economically available to mankind. This job is not easy, 
for the environment is highly corrosive, with frequent storms on the 
