Denys Overholser

Denys Dale Overholser (April 30, 1939 – April 28, 2026) was an American electrical engineer and stealth technology specialist known for his work on radar cross-section (RCS) prediction and low-observable aircraft design at Lockheed's Skunk Works. During the development of Lockheed Have Blue, the experimental demonstrator that led to the Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk, Overholser recognized the practical significance of the diffraction theory of Soviet physicist Pyotr Ufimtsev and helped apply it to the prediction and reduction of aircraft radar returns.

Early life and education Overholser was born in Glendale, California, on April 30, 1939. He attended Dallas High School and Oregon State University, where he was a member of both wrestling teams. He graduated from Oregon State in 1962 with degrees in electrical engineering and mathematics, and later earned graduate degrees in systems engineering and operations research.

Career Boeing and Lockheed After graduating from Oregon State, Overholser joined Boeing, where he worked in systems engineering on missile projects. He was selected from among approximately 1,500 engineers for computer training.

Overholser recognized that the work of Soviet physicist Pyotr Ufimtsev could be adapted for practical RCS prediction. Lockheed used this insight in a computer program known as Echo 1, which computed RCS from different viewing angles and wavelengths. Because the available computers could handle flat surfaces more readily than smooth compound curves, the Lockheed design used a set of planar facets.

Death Overholser died on April 28, 2026, at the age of 86.