A former Berks County man was among the 258 passengers aboard Pam Am Flight 103 killed Wednesday when it crashed in Lockerbie, Scotland.

Rodney P. Hilbert, 40, of Newtown, Delaware County, formerly of Topton, was returning from a business trip to Scotland when the Boeing 747 exploded and crashed.

He was employed by Rohm and Haas Co. as a senior control systems engineer in the Bristol, Bucks County, plant for about 15 years. He previously had been employed by Dow Chemical Co.

Hilbert flew to England on Sunday and drove to Scotland on a business trip, said his sister, Teresa Giovannelli of Temple.

He drove back to London to board the plane bound for New York City.

Hilbert was the husband of June (Shiffer) Hilbert, formerly of Reading.

Born in Reading, he was a son of Walter W. and Florence A. (Mertz) Hilbert, 4822 Kutztown Road, Temple, former residents of Topton.

Hilbert was a 1966 graduate of Brandywine Heights High School, where he was captain of the basketball team. He received a bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering from Drexel University in 1971.

He is also survived by a son, Joshua, 14, and a daughter, Olivia, 11, both at home.