John S. Langford, Chairman and President  Dr. Langford is an experienced aerospace industry veteran and entrepreneur, having founded Aurora Flight Sciences in 1989 and Athena Technologies in 1998. Langford earned his undergraduate degree in aeronautics from MIT in 1979. As a student he was employed by Lockheed Corporation and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. After graduation he worked for Lockheed as an engineer on the development of the F-117 stealth fighter. He returned to MIT in the mid 1980s for graduate work, where he earned a master’s in aeronautics, a master’s in defense policy, and a doctoral degree in aeronautics and public policy. He worked for the Institute for Defense Analyses in Alexandria, Virginia before founding his first company in 1989. While at MIT, Langford organized and led a series of human-powered aircraft projects, culminating in the Daedalus Project which in 1988 shattered the world distance and endurance records for human-powered flight with a 72 mile flight between the Greek islands of Crete and Santorini. Dr. Langford has been awarded the DeFlorez Prize from MIT (1979), the Kremer Speed Prize from the Royal Aeronautical Society (1984), the Young Engineer of the Year award from the AIAA National Capital Section (1989), the National Tibbets Award for outstanding contributions to the SBIR Program (1996) and the Barry M. Goldwater Educator Award from the AIAA (2000). He holds the grade of Associate Fellow in the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and Fellow status in the Royal Aeronautical Society. He was chosen as one of Virginia's Outstanding Industrialists for 2004 by the Commonwealth of Virginia, and was named Virginia’s Small Business Person of the Year for 2004 by the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Dan Brady, Vice President of Aerostructures  Mr. Brady joined Aurora in June 2007 from Vought Aircraft Industries where he was Director of Global Supply Chain Management and previously Director of Boeing and Bell Military Programs. At Aurora he is responsible for the profit and loss of the Aerostructures business sector . His daily responsibilities include overall program development and program execution which includes the oversight of component production for prime contractors such as Northrop Grumman for the Global Hawk, and Sikorsky Aircraft for the sonobuoy launcher for MH-60R and the main rotor pylon for Sikorsky’s CH-53K heavy-lift helicopter. The Aerostructures team was also awarded a USAF contract to develop a concept demonstrator for the Advanced Composite Cargo Aircraft. Mr. Brady has over 30 years of experience managing military and commercial aircraft programs incorporating a broad range of activities including development and implementation of business unit strategy, global supply chain management, business management, international experience in supplier management, contract negotiations, and teaming. In 1996, he was appointed Northrop Grumman’s Commercial Aircraft Division Leader for the Program Management Center of Excellence Initiative. Mr. Brady holds a Bachelor of Sciences in Aeronautical Engineering from Purdue University and a Master of Business Administration from the C.W. Post Center, Long Island University.

Tom Clancy, Chief Technical Officer and Vice President of Advanced Concepts  Mr. Clancy joined Aurora as one of its original staff in 1989 after completing Electrical Engineering coursework at MIT. He has a broad background across all aspects of UAV engineering and technology. Early in his career, he was group leader for avionics, heading the team responsible for the design and original sizing of an electrical propulsion system for the Perseus high-altitude UAV, later becoming group leader for propulsion, managing the development of the Arion I closed-cycle engine, and overseeing the maturation of the Arion IIB multi-stage turbocharged engine. As the Perseus aircraft design progressed into integration, he served as project manager and chief engineer for the entire Perseus development program. He has also served as chief engineer and flight director on multiple UAV programs and operations at Aurora.

Glenn Ford, Vice President of Quality Assurance   Mr. Ford joined Aurora in April 2010 from United Technologies Corporation, and recently led the B&E Group, as Vice President of Quality. In addition to Quality, his technical experience spans engineering, manufacturing operations, SCM, integrated logistics support, and program management. At Aurora he is responsible for Corporate Quality Assurance, Quality Control and Continuous Improvement. His daily responsibilities include overall quality control, ensuring that Aurora’s deliverables and products meet or exceed all Customer specifications and requirements; quality assurance, ensuring the integrity of Aurora’s robust Quality Management System, and leading Aurora’s continuous improvement and lean manufacturing initiatives. The Quality function also includes oversight of compliance to external criteria, such as AS9100, NADCAP and FAA requirements. Mr. Ford is a life-long aviation professional starting his career in the United States Air Force. He has significant management and touch time on many airframes, such as M/CH-53E, MH-60K, S-70CM-1, S-70C-6, F-22, C-141 and C-5 aircraft. Mr. Ford holds a Bachelor of Science in Operations Management from the Charles F. Dolan School of Business at Fairfield University, and a Master of Business Administration from the Barney School of Business at the University of Hartford.

Javier de Luis, Chief Scientist  Dr. de Luis joined Aurora in 2007 and is presently Aurora’s Chief Scientist. Dr. de Luis earned his BS in1983,his MS in 1985, and his PhD in 1989 in Aeronautics and Astronautics from MIT. His professional interests are in the fields of spaceflight research and operations, engineering design and analysis, and technology management. Dr. de Luis joined Payload Systems Inc. in 1989 as a staff scientist, and later held the position of Chief Scientist and CEO of the company. PSI was acquired by Aurora in 2007. Dr. de Luis has served as the co-investigator and project manager for several spaceflight payloads. He also served as a payload representative at Mission Control during mission operations. He has published papers on such diverse topics as piezoelectric actuators and intelligent structures, structural control, design and development of spaceflight systems. Dr. de Luis is a recipient of the MIT James Means Memorial Prize for excellence in space systems engineering; a NASA Commendation for Technology Excellence, a NASA Group Achievement Award, and a NASA Manned Flight Awareness Award. He was three times a finalist in the NASA Astronaut Selection Program. He holds a US patent for electrically insulated embedded piezoelectrics in composite structures. Dr. de Luis has appeared on several local and national news programs as commentator on space shuttle missions.

Ralph Koch, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer  Mr. Koch joined the Company in October 2003. His daily responsibilities include managing all contracts, accounting, financial and treasury functions, as well as, budgeting and long-range forecasting. In addition, Mr. Koch is responsible for M&A evaluation, due diligence and financial integration. Before entering private industry in 1991, Mr. Koch was an audit partner with KPMG’s Washington, DC practice. Previously, he was a co-founder and CFO for RegalWorks, Inc., a holding company for media and business services companies where he was responsible for M&A. Prior to 2000, he was the CFO for CardSystems, Inc., an electronic payment processing company and Information Management Consultants, a government contractor providing information technology services. He has experience with multiple private and public equity and debt financings. Mr. Koch is a Certified Public Accountant in Virginia and member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and has a BS in Business Administration from George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia.

Kristine T. Miller, Vice President of Business Operations  Ms. Miller is responsible for strategic infrastructure planning and execution for Aurora’s four locations. The General Managers in VA, WV, MS and MA directly report to her for business operations. Site responsibilities include facilities, security, MIS/IT, corporate communications and public outreach, human resources and corporate flight operations. Since joining the organization in 1994, Ms. Miller has been responsible for human and capital resources planning to support the company’s growth both organically and through acquisition. In 1999 she led activities to establish an international joint venture and subsequently a successful acquisition in 2000 that doubled the company size. Ms. Miller led the green field activities to start an operation in Columbus, Mississippi in 2005 and an R&D center in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 2006. Ms. Miller joined Aurora in 1994 as Director of Administration after ten years’ industry experience working with government contractors BDM International and Comprehensive Technologies International, Inc. She holds a BS in Business Administration from George Mason University and an MBA from George Washington University.

Jeff A. Tillery, Vice President, Orion  Mr. Tillery joined Aurora in August 2005, In his current role, Mr. Tillery leads the Program Management Office (PMO) in the design, development, rapid prototyping, and flight testing of the Orion Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) UAS. Prior to his role with Orion, Mr. Tillery served as our Director of Engineering and Vice President of Quality Assurance. As the Vice President of Quality, Mr. Tillery provided corporate oversight of all of Aurora facilities’ quality management systems involving design, manufacturing, and supply chain management processes. Prior to joining Aurora, Mr. Tillery served as the Global Director of Quality with Measurement Specialties, Inc., a global designer and manufacturer of sensors and pressure transmitters. Additionally, he served MSI in program management roles for military/aerospace pressure sensors. Prior to MSI, Mr. Tillery held a variety of mechanical design engineering and management roles in both engineering and quality with world-class organizations including GE Fanuc, Sundstrand, and Hughes Aircraft. Mr. Tillery received his BS degree from Purdue University in 1983, and is GE-certified as a Six Sigma Blackbelt with specialized emphasis on Design for Six Sigma and Design for Reliability for product development.

John Tylko, Vice President of Business Development  Mr. Tylko was a founding member of Aurora’s Board of Directors and has been continuously involved with the company since its inception in 1989. Mr. Tylko was an Advanced Manufacturing Engineer at General Electric’s Aircraft Engine Group from 1979 to 1981 where he was responsible for development of composite material structures on the F-404 and T-700 military aircraft engines. Mr. Tylko co-founded General Computer Company (“GCC”) in 1981 and served as its Chief Operating Officer from 1987 to 2003. GCC developed a variety of innovative products in the consumer electronics and personal computer markets, ranging from video games to laser printers. Mr. Tylko was responsible for all aspects of operational management necessary to grow the company from startup to over $50 million in revenue. He also co-founded VideoGuide in 1993 and was instrumental in its sale to Gemstar TV Guide International. VideoGuide develops interactive electronic program guides for television. Mr. Tylko served as a Vice President of Aurora since May, 2003. He led Aurora’s Aerostructures business sector through May, 2006 and played a major role in managing Aurora’s Global Hawk manufacturing program. He led the transition of Aurora’s West Virginia manufacturing plant to a state-of-the-art composite structures manufacturing center. In May, 2006 he assumed overall responsibility for Aurora’s business development and strategic planning. Mr. Tylko holds a BS in Aeronautics and Astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and is a lecturer in MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He is a recipient of MIT’s Founders Award which recognizes entrepreneurship.