Stephen D. Stiles
80, a former pilot and executive with Eastern Air Lines, passed away on January 12, 2008. A beloved husband, father, and grandfather, he had an inspirational career in aviation that spanned four and half decades and covered all aspects of the industry, including aviator, leader in both labor and management, and innovator. Above all, the man is remembered for his impeccable integrity and honor that touched everyone he came in contact with. He joined Eastern Air Lines in his early 20's and quickly became known for his passionate interest in aviation. He was elected by 3,000 pilots to be one of two representatives to the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), and so unusual was this that Eddie Rickenbacker, World War I flying ace and founder of Eastern Air Lines commented, "Can they make them any younger"? In the years when Frank Borman became president of Eastern, Stephen served on the former astronaut's executive team as manager of flight safety. Stephen's strong views on giving the pilot more control in the cockpit resulted in his advocacy and the eventual implementation of an in-cockpit radar system. He lectured on this concept to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in Washington, DC, and at the inception of deregulation in the airline industry, appeared on Boston television in a panel discussion. Stephen piloted the famous DC-3 hanging in the Smithsonian Institution's Air and Space Museum and was one of the pioneering captains on the new L1011 in Eastern's routes to South America. He also served as Chief Pilot for the airline. An avid sailor, he belonged to the Boothbay Harbor Yacht Club and Southport Yacht Club in Maine, and in his retirement years skippered his sailboat along the coast of Maine with his wife Anne as first mate. A resident of Weston, Massachusetts and Southport, Maine, he is survived by his wife Anne Hilton Stiles; five children, Jo Anne Stephanie Stiles of Boston, Susan Stiles Dowell of Monkton, Maryland, Douglass R. Stiles of Wayland, Geoffrey R. Stiles of Porter, ME, and Allan W. Stiles of Arlington, MA, and 11 grandchildren. A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, January 19, at 2:00 pm at St. Peter's Episcopal Church, 320 Boston Post Road, Weston, MA. Expressions of sympathy may be made in Stephen's memory to St. Peter's Episcopal Church Discretionary Fund.