Retired Navy Captain Arvid Edwin (Ed) Forsman, 89, of Laurel Lodge Retirement Community, Cleveland, GA (formerly of Solomons, MD & Eveleth, MN) passed away on April 15, 2022, at Northeast Georgia Medical Center with his son, Dan, by his side.
Capt. Forsman was born on Nov 26, 1932, in Des Moines, Iowa, to the late Adolph Edwin Forsman and Esther Reisenbichler Forsman. At age 3, he and his younger sister, Mary, lost their dear Mother to pneumonia. His father then moved the family to Eveleth, MN. During his years at Eveleth High School, he graduated with honors, achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, played cello in the orchestra and band, acted in plays, sang in the choir, and played on the football and basketball teams, all the while working in the family furniture business.
After graduating from Eveleth Junior College at the age of 21, he joined the U.S. Navy as an Aviation Cadet. On December 26, 1956, he married Navy Nurse Ann Manley in Oak Harbor, WA, and they celebrated 64 years of marriage until her death on October 3, 2021.
He is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School Class 41, the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School, a graduate of the U.S. Air War College, and he received a Master of Science from the University of Rochester.
His first tour of duty was with the Heavy Attack Mining Squadron 10 in South Korea in 1953. In 1956, he was assigned to Patrol Squadron 17 at NAS Whidbey Island, WA, where he was a Plane Commander and was also the Anti-Submarine Warfare Officer and Operations Control Center Officer for the Commander Fleet Air, Whidbey Island, WA. He was a graduate of the Naval Test Pilot School Class 41; he served in the Weapons Systems Test Division of the Naval Air Test Center from 1965 to 1968. In 1968 Capt. Forsman was Skipper of the Heavy Attack Squadron 21 at Cam Ranh Bay, Republic of Vietnam; conducting low-level, night attack missions using electric optical sensors in Vietnam and Laos. From 1971 to 1975 he served as the Chief Officer in the Strategic Analysis Section, Joint Strategic Target Planning Staff at Offutt AFB, NE; conducting worldwide computerized war games of the Single Integrated Operations Plan (SIOP) assessing the U.S. nuclear strike plan. Capt. Forsman served as Director, Programs Division at Naval Air Systems Command when he was assigned as a special assistant to the Chief of Naval Material conducting studies on manpower balance. His final command was the Director of Anti-Submarine Aircraft Test Directorate from 1977 to his retirement in 1980. He logged 8600 flight hours in 40 different fixed-wing aircraft and 3 helicopters.
After retiring from the Navy he worked for Sperry Univac and later UNISYS, and became Site Manager for their operation in NAS Pax River, MD for 11 years. In 1991, he became Site Manager for SEMCOR directing all their programs at the Naval Air Test Center, later Naval Air Warfare Center. In 2003 he left to form his consulting firm, A&A International, and after several years retired.
Capt. Forsman was a Past President of The Patuxent River Naval Air Museum, Past President of The Rotary Club, headed the Oyster Festival in 1994, was a Paul Harris Fellow, was on the Board of St Mary’s College, sang in St. Maries Musica for years and was part of many recordings, was an elder and sang in the choir at Patuxent Presbyterian Church. He also volunteered in the community and prepared tax returns for those who could not.
He was an avid golfer, who for many years, played golf regularly, and qualified for the Senior Olympics in golf. He immensely enjoyed participating in Father-Son Golf Tournaments with his son, Dan, in Myrtle Beach, SC and traveled with him to Scotland to play St. Andrews. Annual hunting trips to South Georgia with his son, grandsons, and nephews was a special time. He also became certified in deep-sea scuba diving and traveled with his son, Alec, to scuba dive in Belize. For many years, he enjoyed traveling with his wife, Ann, on frequent trips to visit their daughter, Laurie, in Arizona and Canada.
Capt. Forsman is survived by his children, Daniel Thomas Forsman (Rhonda) of Lawrenceville, GA, and Laurie Ann Hogan of Ft. Frances, Ontario, Canada; his grandchildren: Jennifer Forsman (Nate) Hansford, Daniel Stephen Forsman, Stephanie Forsman, and David Forsman; his great-grandchildren, Wyatt and Daphne. He also is survived by his sister and brother-in-law, Margy (Forsman) and Les Nelson, and sister Jane (Forsman) Harrison, and brother-in-law Bob Buchanan, in addition to several nieces and nephews, extended family and friends. In addition to his parents and his wife, he was preceded in death by his son, Alec Edwin Forsman, his sister and brother-in-law, Mary Esther (Forsman) and Mark Hovland, his sister Nan (Forsman) Buchanan, Stepmother Dorothy Schlenker Forsman, and sons-in-law, Pat Cochran and Murray Hogan.
Memorial Services will be held at 10 AM on Saturday, April 30, 2022, at Patuxent Presbyterian Church in California, MD with Pastor Matt Pooley officiating. A eulogy will be given by his son, Dan. The family will greet visitors at the church beginning at 9:00 AM. A graveside service with military honor guard will be held immediately after the memorial services on Saturday, April 30, 2022, at Trinity Episcopal Church Cemetery, 47477 Trinity Church Road, St. Mary’s City, MD 20686.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in memory of Captain Arvid Edwin Forsman may be made to Patuxent Presbyterian Church, 23421 Kingston Creek Road, California, MD 20619, or to the Patuxent River Naval Air Museum, 22156 Three Notch Road, Lexington Park, MD 20653
