Controversies
Due to the false assumption that Kartvelishvili was of Russian origin ( Georgia at that time was part of the USSR and the relationship between both superpowers was stressed ), he never became as famous as his counterpart Clarence Johnson who was leading designer of the Lockheed Corporation. Notable fact: Georgian call themselves "kartvelebi" and the surname of Alexander comes from "Kartveli"(Georgian).
Since Kartvelishvili's work made him engaged in military affairs, he was many years long covered from the public and information about his work and personality were classified as there was a general threat from espionage and assassination or kidnapping of scientists and engineers. That didn't change until his death. Just recently, NASA archieves unvealed a certain amount of data about his person and works on the requests from Georgian authorities. His identity was widely unknown to anyone in exception of his workplace and military archives.
Read more about this topic: Alexander Kartveli