The year was 1990. I, Carl Jones was an Electronics Technician fresh from the military. I had worked on everything from Cryptographic gear for soldiers and airman to communicate securely. To the Forward Area Alert Radar (FAAR) System, used to monitor for low flying aircraft. After 12yrs in the military having had a stint in many places to include; Ft Hood, TX- Fort Jackson, SC- Ft Gordon, GA- and Ft Lewis, WA in the United States. He also saw duty in Ansbach, Germany- Gaeta, Italy- Camp Stanton, S. Korea – and Mons, Belgium. Mons is the true seat of Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE).
After my last duty station in Korea, I ETS’ed (Estimated Termination of Service). I thought it was time to try my luck on the outside world. I was married in 1981 to my wonderful wife Wilma C. PattersonJones, whom I call affectionately “Wilma C”. God had blessed us with a son in Oct of ‘82, Carl Levon Jones II, “CJ”. Yeah, we know he should have been a junior, according to “Proper Etiquette”, but we didn’t not want him called “Junior” ergo the second.
It was simply time for me to start spending time with “CJ”. Not to mention that last Korean assignment had been an unaccompanied tour meaning, family was not allowed. Militarily there was good reason for that restriction. The year was 1988, and the Olympics we being held in Seoul. The (Forward Area Alert Radar)FAAR’s I was the Non Commissioned Officer In Charge (NCOIC) of were extremely important at this time. I will not go into their placements, except to say, they were facing North Korea during heighten military presence. Suffice to say, as the NCOIC, I never got to Seoul to see the Dream team or any other event! Nonetheless, I missed my wife and son.
Time passed slowly at first. I was able to get a job working at Xerox, as a Printer Repairman. This was when there were ink drums in every copy machine, and your uniform was white shirt and tie!! Everything I had learned in the military was going to waste. Though frustrating, I am old school, I have a family and they need to be taken care of. So I work at whatever I can get. One day wife lets me know there is to be a Job Fair by the airport. In attendance was to be different Defense Contractors. I had a number of Resume’s in a folder and was as nervous as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs. I played the room and handed out resume’ after resume’. There were some who seemed to pay attention and others who could not move on to the next person fast enough. I had pretty much resigned myself to barely making enough for a while to just get by. Me, a 12yr U.S. Army veteran. Highly trained and until recently, a leader of men, trusted by the senior government personnel.
It had been close to a month since the job fair. Out of nowhere, I receive a call from Lockheed Missiles and Space Company. They said they had perused my resume and saw a lot of things they liked and wanted me to come in for an interview. They had just won a new contract and were looking for individuals with a strong electronics background. They did not have the time to train new employees in the basics. It would be an all-day affair and they would provide the lunch and refreshments. I had no idea what to expect but I knew what I knew. The interview started with my resume’ and what I had been doing with myself since I separated from the service. After passing that part, they turned things over to a logic person to see how quickly I could make up my mind on simple, non-technical ways. I found it amusing, yet they seemed to put great stock on it. Well after lunch the real interview started. I was introduced to their Head Engineer, Luke Yates. Once again, he was very cordial, telling me he would be asking a lot of technical questions and wanted me to be as comfortable as possible before we started. Well we entered his “Back Room”, where there were papers all rolled and a few Blackboards. He pointed to a chair for me to sit facing a board. He started scribbling on them where I could not see him. When finished, he turned the board around and said, “Okay Carl, what type of circuit is this?” I was now in my element and really felt like I was being challenged. The first one was a simple Step Down Transformer. The next was an even simpler Bridge Rectifier with an idiot diode at the input. He only had a few more questions where he pulled some of the papers randomly from tables. They were actually Schematics. I answered all the questions quickly and confidently, and Luke had the biggest smile on his face! He said this procedure usually took much longer, but he was going to talk to the manager and send me home now. In a few weeks I received an Offer Letter from Lockheed Missiles and Space in the Mail. I was given the Title of Electronic Data Systems Analyst (EDSA). It more than doubled my salary with straight hours! My career had finally started with me earning my way due to my own merits. I excelled within Lockheed and they later merged with Martin Marietta, to become Lockheed Martin. I was with them for sixteen years and became a person they knew they could count on. I found this to be a two way sword as I was passed for promotion to management one time too many because they “Liked me where I was”
It took me less than a week to find a job with British Aerospace Electronics (BAE). This was not like they took a chance on me unseen. We worked side-by-side and I usually at least held my own. I believe it was the teamwork and my ability two broker agreements with other vendors, other employees and Sr. Government types alike. The Director of engineering, Nichols Elias and I hit it off almost immediately. One evening we were having a hiring event and there was one applicant I wanted. Well, my manager wanted him als elsewhere with the company. Well after debating the merits of both locations during our round table, Nick pointed to a door and said “Two men enter and the one who comes out wins the applicant.” Suffice it to say, the door was never used and I got my applicant! Unfortunately, as I liked BAE, our thoughts of management differed too much for me to stay.
During this period while I was deciding what to do next. Don’t get me wrong, I knew I was leaving BAE. I knew Lockheed Martin wanted me back. There was also a new, up and coming company who was courting me pretty hard, called “NJVC”. I liked the thought of entering a company in management and helping it to grow. Being in a position to mentor and assist personnel as they grew. It didn’t hurt that my BAE Director had already moved over Nick, and was now a VP with NJVC. So I decided to go to NJVC. I think it was the best decision I could have made. Not that I wouldn’t have enjoyed returning to Lockheed Martin, but with the decision made, I move on!

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