The Commonwealth of Virginia's Unmanned Systems Resource
2021 Advisory Board Members
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Andrew (Andy) Alden
Program Leader, VA Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI)
As the leader for Demonstration and Deployment Research at the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI) Division of Freight, Transit, and Heavy Vehicle Safety, Andy Alden’s current work focuses on highway freight safety and efficiency, low-speed autonomous vehicles, unmanned aircraft system applications in support of ground transportation, road weather safety, animal-vehicle conflict, bus transit efficiency, and adverse road salt impacts. He is a registered professional engineer with a master’s degree in civil engineering and experience in the environmental and information technology fields, the development and deployment of vehicle data acquisition systems, and related naturalistic research methods. Andy serves as the director of the I-81 Corridor Coalition and is active in the National Academies Transportation Research Board (TRB), the American Meteorological Society (AMS), the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), and other organizations.
Virginia Tech Transportation Institute
Phone: 540-231-1526
Joe Allman
CEO, UAV Pro
As president and chief executive officer of UAV Pro Inc., in Blackstone, Joe Allman manages unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) test operations conducted locally as well as nationwide. He is a manned aviator and has obtained unmanned internal pilot, external pilot, and crew chief certifications. During his tenure with UAV Pro, he has been the principal safety director and/or UAS subject matter expert for multiple military and commercial UAS operations. He provides local safety oversight for the Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership’s Blackstone Test Site with 2,200 sorties during the last three years. Joe provides program management for UAS target presentations for both aerial- and ground-based systems for the Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Army, DARPA, and NASA. His wealth of varied experiences affords him a seasoned approach to new systems development, integration, and testing. Joe is a graduate of Oklahoma State University.
UAV Pro
joe@uavpro.com
Phone: 434-292-4914 ext201
David Barton
Formerly Director Aerial Services, Chief Pilot , Draper Aden
David Barton is a proven innovator who forever changed how the Department of Defense (DoD) utilizes unmanned systems video using software. At Draper Aden Associates (DAA), David is solely responsible for the company’s unmanned systems strategy, implementation, and revenue. He also serves as the Chief Pilot, responsible for DAA’s aerial/drone program. He began his work with unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) when he co-founded EchoStorm in 2001. There he envisioned a system that would provide the DoD with the first net-centric services-based architecture for unmanned systems discoverability and accessibility. After EchoStorm, David continued to support the intelligence community as the lead for a U.S. government laboratory challenged with solving long-term technical challenges for the U.S. Intelligence Community. In this capacity, he was recognized as having a significant impact in Data Science and Compartmented Data Sharing challenges using novel solutions.
Draper Aden Associates
dbarton@daa.com
Phone: 757-478-2836
David Bowles
Executive Director, VA Institute for Spaceflight & Autonomy (VISA)
Dr. David Bowles joined the Virginia Institute for Spaceflight and Autonomy (VISA) at Old Dominion University in 2019 after more than 35 years at NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC). He started as a materials research engineer, and then moved into progressively increasing senior leadership roles, culminating as LaRC’s director in 2015. As director, he focused on transforming the work, the workforce, and the workplace with the widespread use of emerging digital and autonomous technologies. David is active in the aerospace and local communities, serving on numerous boards and as an Associate Fellow in AIAA. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Presidential Rank Award of Meritorious Executive in 2017, NASA’s Distinguished Service Medal in 2019, and NASA’s Outstanding Leadership Medal in 2005 and 2015. He is a graduate of Virginia Tech, where he earned a doctoral degree in Engineering Science and Mechanics.
Phone: 757-287-8517
Nevin Carr
Vice President, Navy Strategic Account Executive, Leidos
Nevin Carr is responsible for identifying and realizing strategic initiatives that can help the Navy customer achieve mission success, and for growing Leidos’ naval and maritime business. In this role, he helps Leidos technology answer critical customer challenges, including using autonomous and unmanned systems to increase U.S. Navy combat power, reduce risk, and keep Sailors out of harm's way. Nevin retired from the U.S. Navy as a rear admiral in 2012 following a 34-year career that included command of USS Arleigh Burke and USS Cape St. George. As deputy director of Surface Warfare for Combat Systems, he was responsible for requirements governing all surface Navy combat systems, weapons, sensors, and data links. As Chief of Naval Research, he spearheaded the Navy's $2 billion investment in science and technology.
Nick Devereux
Policy and Government Affairs, Wing
Nick Devereux works with Wing (an Alphabet company) in policy and government affairs, where he focuses on policy on the federal, state, and local levels as well as spearheads community engagement efforts for Wing’s operations in Virginia. Prior to Wing, Nick served as legislative counsel and senior policy advisor to U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner of Virginia. He advised the senator on a broad range of policy issues including judiciary, labor, transportation/infrastructure, and NASA. Nick’s work included drafting legislation and assisting in driving legislative priorities as part of Sen. Warner’s position as chair of the Surface Transportation Subcommittee of the Senate Commerce Committee. Nick, who grew up in Charlottesville, received a bachelor’s degree from The Johns Hopkins University and a Juris Doctor from Washington and Lee School of Law.
Phone: 202-346-1154
Lisa Ellman
Executive Director, Commercial Drone Alliance (CDA)
As a co-founder of the Commercial Drone Alliance (CDA) and a partner at global law firm Hogan Lovells LLP, Lisa Ellman is widely recognized as one of the world’s foremost authorities on drone policy and law. Throughout her career, Lisa has worked to bridge government policymaking and business innovation (a combination that has become known as "polivation”). She has held a variety of positions at top levels of the executive branch at the White House and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). She led the DOJ's effort to develop a policy on use of UAS in the U.S. and represented the DOJ in the federal interagency process considering UAS-related policy issues. Lisa was featured in Fortune's "Most Powerful Women" series for her efforts to develop U.S. drone policy.
Commercial Drone Alliance
lellman@commercialdronealliance.org
Phone: 202-637-6934
Mike Fry
Director of Undersea Navy – C5 Systems Division, L3Harris Technologies
Mike Fry is an experienced defense industry executive with a demonstrated history of successful leadership in developing maritime strategies and markets within the U.S. and allied nations. He joined L3Harris Technologies in 2020 and is a program leader for undersea C5ISR programs for the Department of Defense (DoD) and international market spaces. He also is the managing partner of Michael.Fry.Defense LLC, a consulting firm specializing in maritime, defense, and autonomous systems. Previously, he was vice president of Strategy and Business Development for Maritime Systems at QinetiQ North America. He started his career at Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, where he developed a wide-ranging background by serving in numerous design, engineering, construction, and operational employment scenarios for tactical maritime systems.
Phone: 804-694-9412
Jon Greene
Associate Director for Strategic Development, Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science at Virginia Tech
As Associate Director for Strategic Development at the Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS) at Virginia Tech, Jon Greene focuses on assisting faculty members to develop and capture research opportunities, building interdisciplinary research teams, and forming partnerships with government and industry. He joined Virginia Tech in 2009 after a 28-year Navy career. While on active duty he served as commanding officer, USS McInerney; reactor officer, USS Theodore Roosevelt; assistant chief of staff, Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) and Combat Systems, Commander Naval Surface Forces Atlantic; and commanding officer, Naval Surface Warfare Center at Dam Neck. He was the founding executive director of the Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership (MAAP), Virginia Tech’s FAA-sponsored unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) test site.
Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science | Virginia Tech
Phone: 540-231-8566
Tombo Jones
Director, Virginia Tech Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership (MAAP)
Tombo Jones is the director of the Virginia Tech Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership (MAAP), where he oversees a growing portfolio of major federal drone-integration initiatives and technical research projects. Jones had served as the organization’s associate director since 2019, managing the day-to-day operations of the FAA-designated test site and MAAP’s participation in the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration Pilot Program (IPP) and BEYOND program. He joined MAAP in 2017 following more than a decade in progressively larger leadership roles in the U.S. Coast Guard. He served as a sector chief of administration and logistics, aviation operations officer and chief pilot, and safety management systems and standardization instructor, developing extensive expertise in managing and mitigating risk in advanced aviation. Before joining the Coast Guard, Tombo served for seven years in the U.S. Army and received the Meritorious Service Medal, Bronze Star, and numerous other awards and commendations.
Virginia Tech Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership
tomboj@vt.edu
Phone: 540-231-8890
Samantha Magill
Business Development Manager, Aeronautics Research Directorate
NASA Langley Research Center
Dr. Samantha “Sam” Magill is the business development manager for the Aeronautics Research Directorate at NASA’s Langley Research Center. For nearly three years prior to joining NASA, Sam was the event program executive for the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics’ (AIAA) SciTech, AVIATION, and Propulsion and Energy Forums. Most of her career has been in the private aerospace sector with business aviation. At Honda Aircraft Company, Sam held several roles including: Technical Marketing and Sales Engineering; Flight Sciences’ Stability & Control Engineer; and Special Projects. Just outside of Munich, Germany, she collaborated within the Fairchild-Dornier legacy on a ‘start-up’ OEM designing and building a company for a clean-sheet light business jet. Earlier in her career, she was an engineer on unmanned aerial systems (UAS) with AeroVironment. Sam completed her master’s and doctoral degrees in aerospace engineering at Virginia Tech University and a bachelor’s in aerospace engineering at Auburn University.
Nate Robie
Manager, Unmanned Systems, Dominion Energy
Nate Robie has a passion for aviation and implementing innovative solutions to improve operations. As manager of unmanned systems, he is responsible for complying with federal and local regulations, and expanding the use of drones (aerial, land, and maritime) throughout Dominion Energy’s 16-state footprint. In his ten years of aviation experience, Nate has held various positions in the civilian sector and military. While at The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, he ensured safe operations of Part 139 certificated airport with over 1,100 daily flights. During his service in the U.S. Air Force, he utilized unmanned and manned aircraft for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and coordinating close air support.
nathaniel.a.robie@dominionenergy.com
Phone: 804-387-4189
Chris Sadler
Deputy Chief/Deputy Director, York County Department of Fire and Life Safety
Chris Sadler has served for more than 34 years in the fire services. Chris is a Nationally Registered Paramedic, a graduate of the National Fire Academy Executive Fire Officer Program, a hazardous materials specialist, and a safety officer with the Federal Emergency Management (FEMA) Virginia Task Force 2 Urban Search and Rescue Team. He speaks at various local and national conferences and programs, serves on several national and international drone-related organizations and committees, and is a subject matter expert to entities such as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency (HSEMA) of Washington D.C., the National Institute on Standards and Technology (NIST), International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), and the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA). Chris has assisted many public safety and government agencies around the country with the establishment of their unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) programs, FAA applications and waivers, and standard operating procedures development.
York County Department of Fire and Life Safety
Phone: 757-890-3600
Scott Strimple
Chief Executive Officer, Virginia UAS
Scott Strimple has more than 27,000 flight hours in manned aircraft as well as more than 40 years of experience with small UAS operations. He is a principal partner in Virginia UAS, a consulting firm in UAS safety management systems and flight training programs, and a captain and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) check airman evaluator for United Airlines. Scott has extensive leadership and training expertise that bring an industry-leading perspective to the world of unmanned flight. He holds all FAA flight instructing certifications and has served as chair of the ASTM Committee F38 on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) training subcommittee to develop international standards for the UAS industry. He was appointed to the Virginia Unmanned Systems Commission and the Virginia Aviation Business Association (VABA) board of directors as chairperson for the UAS chapter. Scott is also an Emmy award-winning filmmaker and a highly respected evangelist for safe UAS operations within the photo and cinema industry.
Phone: 804-641-7278
Nick Swayne
Executive Director, 4-Virginia, James Madison University
As executive director of 4-Virginia, Dr. Nick Swayne leads a partnership among eight universities – George Mason University (GMU), James Madison University (JMU), University of Virginia (UVA), Old Dominion University (ODU), Virginia Tech (VT), Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Virginia Military Institute, and the College of William & Mary– in meeting the mission to promote collaborations that leverage the strengths of each institution and improve the efficiency and economic impact of higher education across the Commonwealth. He is a retired Army officer with 26 years of service, the founder of the JMU X-Labs, faculty advisor for the Stanford University Innovation Fellows at JMU, executive director of Virginia-DC FIRST LEGO League, co-chair of the Veteran Scholar’s Task Force, and co-founder of the Harrisonburg Regional Veterans Collaborative.
Phone: 540-568-6093
Tom Walker
CEO, DroneUp
A former military officer, Tom Walker is a recognized pioneer in military and government digital reform. He has managed extensive programming and web enablement of computer systems to support both the U.S. and international special forces. As a result of his thesis, “The Point of Mobile Confluence,” Tom was tapped as an advisor to the White House on innovative technologies and their impact on the emerging workforce. The data from the research, combined with his military search and rescue experience, led to the creation of DroneUp, where he serves as the chief executive officer. The company is a comprehensive network of drone pilots, providing aerial data collection services that deliver on-demand drone services to commercial, government, and public safety organizations through its's patent-pending verification platform, Mission Match™️. With a variety of industrial uses, DroneUp is poised to assist with sustainable drone integration strategies for diverse organizations.
Phone: 757-337-2125, ext. 701
Charles Werner
Director, DroneResponders and Chair, National Council on Public Safety UAS (NCPSU)
A 47-year veteran of public safety, Charles Werner is director of DroneResponders, a non-profit organization whose mission is to facilitate preparedness, response, and resilience using unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) operated by public safety organizations around the world. After retiring as chief of the Charlottesville Fire Department in 2015, Charles was a senior advisor and acting deputy state coordinator with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM). He was instrumental in developing one of the first public safety UAS curricula at Piedmont Community College and assisted in the implementation of UAS programs for the Albemarle County Sheriff’s Office and VDEM. He has provided guidance to many other public safety agencies. Charles served on the Secure and Resilient Commonwealth Panel and is the chair of the Public Safety UAS Sub Panel. In 2018, he was selected as Homeland Security Person of the Year by Homeland Security Today Magazine for his work on public safety UAS.
Phone: 434-825-5402
Amber Wilson
Aviation Technology Manager, Virginia Department of Aviation
Dr. Amber L. Wilson works closely with leaders at the Virginia Department of Aviation (DOAV) to guide the Commonwealth's growth and oversight of UAS. This is accomplished through developing and recommending rules and regulations to ensure the safe operation and integration of UAS and other emerging technologies with manned aircraft and educating the public on UAS benefits and safe operations. She serves on the advisory board for UnTrafficked, manages the Governor's Aerospace Advisory Council and SB307 DOAV UAS Work Group, supports legislative liaison efforts for the Virginia General Assembly, leads the HB742 DOAV Work Group, and manages the Virginia Flight Information Exchange (VA-FIX). She has received the International Aerodrome Certified Employee distinction and the Airport Security Coordinator certification. She earned her doctoral degree at the University of Southern Mississippi and her master’s and bachelor’s degrees from Middle Tennessee State University.
Virginia Department of Aviation
amber.wilson@doav.virginia.gov
Phone: 804-236-3630, ext. 636
Todd Yeatts
Senior Manager of Government Operations, The Boeing Company
Todd Yeatts manages Boeing’s government relations in eight states: Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, Massachusetts, and Mississippi. He joined Boeing in 2007 after serving as director of Strategic Communications for an Information Operations-Counter Improvised Explosive Device team in Baghdad, Iraq. A retired, 25-year veteran of the United States Marine Corps, he served as the military aide-de-camp for three Virginia governors. His previous work includes serving as the communications director for the Virginia Tobacco Commission and assistant city manager for the City of Danville. Todd is a member of the Virginia Aerospace Advisory Council, the GO Virginia Region 7 Economic Development Council, the Averett University Board of Trustees, and the National Landing Business Improvement District Board. He is a past chair of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.
Todd.M.Yeatts@boeing.com
Phone: 703-414-6167