A pioneer in linear programming and former USAF mathematician, Alex Orden, died Feb. 9 in Chicago at age 91. After receiving a Ph.D. in Mathematics from MIT in 1950, Orden became a member of the Air Force’s Project SCOOP, for Scientific Computation of Optimum Programs, a task force that pioneered the development of linear programming models for logistical planning. Task force leader G.B. Dantzig cited Orden for providing a computation breakthrough in solving large logistics movement and operations scheduling problems of that time.
For the Air Force and Space Force, an influx of additional resources could be an opportunity to accelerate a massive modernization portfolio and ramp up aircraft and satellite production, defense analysts and former officials told Air & Space Forces Magazine.
