San Diego aerospace engineer Wesley Melvin Dreyer spent decades pushing the boundaries of aviation—from developing top-secret defense projects to helping uncover the cause of the Challenger disaster. This summer, his final wish will be fulfilled: a journey to space.
Photo of Wesley Melvin Dreyer and his family. (Photo courtesy of Celestis)Wesley Melvin Dreyer, who died in 2005, will be among more than 150 individuals honored aboard the Perseverance Flight, a memorial space mission launching from Vandenberg Space Force Base on June 21. The mission is organized by Celestis, a company that sends cremated remains or DNA into space as a tribute to those who dreamed of the stars.
Over a 42-year career, Dreyer left a lasting impact in aerospace and defense. He worked on major military programs, including the Tomahawk missile and the Global Hawk unmanned aircraft. After the Challenger explosion in 1986, he was part of the investigation team that helped determine the cause of the disaster.
One of the rockets sent up into space by Celestis. (Photo courtesy of Celestis)Though much of his work was classified, his passion for space was well known at home.
“Dad was an aerospace engineer, so rockets and the like were always talked about at our house,” said his daughter, Kelly Dreyer. “We went to so many aerospace museums, from the Air and Space Museum here in San Diego to random ones we found on vacation. A small model of his aircraft, the Global Hawk, was even on display locally.”
Wesley Melvin Dreyer had joked that he became an engineer because he couldn’t be an astronaut—but now, through this memorial flight, that dream is being realized. His cremated remains will travel in a flight capsule that will circle the Earth at 17,000 miles per hour before reentering the atmosphere and landing in the Pacific Ocean. The capsule will then be recovered and returned to his family as a keepsake.
“When private citizens were first being considered for space travel, Dad had expressed interest but never followed through,” Kelly Dreyer said. “When we saw the Celestis brochure included in a burial planning guide, it just clicked. He would have loved this.”
Iron capsules that are launched into space. (Photo courtesy of Celetis)For Kelly Dreyer and her mother, the location of the launch adds another layer of meaning. “Work took him to Vandenberg a few times, and now Mom and I will always have that connection—being there to watch him launched into space.”
The Perseverance Flight will mark the company’s 25th overall mission and 12th Earth-orbit flight. For Wesley Melvin Dreyer’s family, though, it’s not about numbers—it’s about giving a lifelong explorer one final adventure.
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