Edward Uhl, who helped invent the bazooka, dies at 92

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Edward Uhl, who helped invent the bazooka during World War II and later led the aerospace company Fairchild Industries Inc., has died. He was 92.

Uhl died Sunday in Oxford, Md., of complications from a stroke he suffered three years earlier, his stepson George Hatcher said.

In 1942, as an Army first lieutenant with an engineering degree, Uhl helped develop a shoulder-fired rocket launcher nicknamed the bazooka because it resembled a tube-shaped musical instrument.

Uhl joined Fairchild as president in 1961. He oversaw its transformation from a military aircraft manufacturer to an aerospace giant before retiring as chairman in 1985.

Fairchild’s products included the A-10 Thunderbolt II, an airplane nicknamed the warthog that was used against Iraqi tanks in the 1990 Gulf War.

More later at www.latimes.com/obits.

-- Associated Press