Robert Charles Blanchard, 87, of Yorktown, VA passed away on Saturday, May 30, 2026.
Born in Scranton, PA, Robert (Bob) Blanchard married his loving and devoted wife, Frances (Kloss) Blanchard on June 14, 1958, and they shared nearly 68 years of marriage.
Bob was fortunate to have a career he loved, working for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for 42 years as an Aerospace Engineer at Johnson Space Center, Goddard Space Flight Center, Langley Research Center, and several NASA field centers. He worked on manned space flight missions, including Projects Mercury and Apollo. He also worked on the Space Shuttle where he was the Principal Investigator for several novel flight experiments to explore microgravity environment of space. He became an entry, descent and landing expert for NASA’s planetary probe missions including Project Viking, Pioneer Venus, Galileo mission, Pathfinder, Mars Exploration Rover (MER), and Phoenix Mars Landing missions. For his work on the Pioneer Venus and Galileo Jupiter projects, he earned NASA’s prestigious Silver Snoopy and Manned Flight Awareness awards.
Bob authored/co-authored more than 100 technical publications and held several teaching positions during and after his career with NASA. He was an Associate Professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University for approximately 20 years; taught science and mathematics courses at the University of Maryland and Saint Leo College; he served as professor in the graduate school at The George Washington University where he held the position of Professorial Lecturer in the Graduate Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department; and was a scientific consultant at the National Institute of Aerospace.
Bob was an active member of the St. Jerome Catholic Church, serving as an usher at the Saturday evening Mass and an offertory collection counter. He also regularly assisted his wife with the church Columbarium, including helping with the physical jobs of changing doors and cleaning niches (especially the high niches).
Bob enjoyed playing golf and cribbage, and especially spending time with his grandchildren. Holidays and special occasions with family were always cherished and created beautiful memories.
Bob was preceded in death by his parents: Anthony and Anna (Gike) Blanchard; two brothers: Joseph Blanchard and Anthony Blanchard; and his sister, Dorothy (Blanchard) Spogli.
Bob is survived by his wife, Frances (Fran) and his four children and their spouses: Elizabeth (Liz) Batts and her husband, George Batts of Newport News, VA; Francine (Frankie) Laurent and her husband, Richard Laurent of Boone, NC; Kathleen Gibson and her husband, Wayne Gibson of Wilmington, NC; and James (J.J.) Blanchard and his wife, Martha (Laquidara) Blanchard of Charlotte, NC; and four grandchildren: Jason Batts of Port Angeles, WA; Megan (Batts) Gill of Newport News, VA; Paul Laurent of Banner Elk, NC; and Spencer Blanchard of Raleigh, NC.
Bob will be remembered for his devotion to his faith, his family, his students, and his lifelong contributions to America’s space program.
A Memorial Mass will be held at 11:00 A.M. on Tuesday, June 9, 2026 at St. Jerome Catholic Church, 116 Denbigh Boulevard, Newport News, VA 23608 with a Reception to follow.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Robert Blanchard’s memory to: the American Parkinson’s Disease Association, P.O. Box 61420, Staten Island, NY 10306, or the St. Jerome Catholic Church Columbarium, 116 Denbigh Boulevard, Newport News, VA 23608.
