Roger Lewis; Executive in Defense Firms

Roger Lewis, a former Amtrak president, General Dynamics Corp. president and an early executive of Lockheed Aircraft Corp., has died in his Washington home at the age of 75.

A native of Los Angeles, Lewis, a longtime defense industry leader, was associated with Pyropower Corp. of La Jolla at the time of his death. He died Nov. 12.

His aviation career began at Lockheed in 1934 where he rose to assistant sales manager before leaving in 1947 to become vice president of Canadair Ltd. in Montreal.

In the 1950s, he served as an assistant secretary of the Air Force and was cited by President Dwight D. Eisenhower for helping lead the development of the intercontinental ballistic missile program.

Lewis served as president, chairman and chief executive officer of General Dynamics from 1962 to 1971, a period in which the company became involved in the Polaris submarine program.

He was president of Amtrak from 1971 to 1975. Lewis also served on several boards. He was a trustee of Stanford University, from which he graduated.

His wife, Elly Thummler, died in 1984. Survivors include two daughters and a son.