AIAA-SD Newsletter
December 2014
THE SAN DIEGO FLYER
Message from the San Diego Section Chair
As promised, the San Diego Section has been having an active 2014-2015 year. In September, the AIAA San Diego Section hosted a helicopter panel that received
great remarks. Those in attendance were able to get a first hand insight on naval
aviation from our panelists. At our October meeting, Northrop Grumman Information
Systems graciously hosted Mr. Nans Kunz from NASA Ames Research Center. He
discussed the SOFIA projects and its engineering challenges. In October, AIAA-SD
also participated in the 2014 High Tech Fair, with a booth that showcased UAVs. In
November, AIAA-SD also hosted an event at San Diego Composites. Dr. Quinn
McAllister discussed nano-materials in composite armor, and his presentation was
followed by a tour of San Diego Composites’ new production facility.
Image: The AIAA San
Diego Section at their
booth at the 2014 High
Tech Fair [Image
Source: AIAA-SD]
I’d like to encourage members to continue to attend these great dinner programs.
Also, please contact me directly at [email protected] if you have any ideas or
if your company can host any future events. [Credit: Cesar Martin]
The San Diego Flyer Vol. 11, Issue 2
Page 1 of 6
AIAA-SD Newsletter
December 2014
AIAA-SD Co-Hosts
Composite Event at SDC
The AIAA San Diego Section held its first
technical series dinner meeting this year. Dr.
Quinn McAllister presented his research on
nano-materials in composite armor, including
the eﬀects of mechanisms of indentation and
scratching of nano-silica on aramid fabrics.
The presentation was held at San Diego
Composites’ (SDC) new state of the art
aerospace production facility, and was well
attended with over 40 participants ranging
from students to AIAA and SAMPE
professional members. We look forward to
seeing you at our next technical series event
in 2015! [Credit: Jon Blackler]
Register for SciTech 2015
Image: AIAA-SD
dinner meeting at San
Diego Composites
[Image Source: AIAASD]
Make sure to register now for the SciTech
2015 conference. SciTech 2015 will be held
January 5th to 9th next year in Kissimmee, Florida. Find out more at [www.aiaascitech.org], or register today by clicking the link [here].
Discover the opportunities that will help you jump-start your career, meet the most
intriguing people in the field, and jump into
the exclusive student and young professional
activities. George Lesieutre, the AIAA SciTech
2015 General Chair, was quoted discussing
the upcoming SciTech conference:
Want to know more
about AIAA-SD?
PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE OR
"Where else are you going to find a grouping FACEBOOK, OR CONTACT US AT:
of aerospace engineers and scientists who
MAIL:
can inspire, mentor, and help you along your
P.O. BOX 3898, SAN DIEGO, CA 92163
chosen career path? Nowhere else, really EMAIL:
that’s what makes coming to SciTech so
[email protected]
important - you start the year oﬀ with a week
WEBSITE:
dedicated solely to discussing aerospace
AIAA-SD.ORG
engineering and science, hearing from highFACEBOOK:
level speakers, networking with industry
FACEBOOK.COM/AIAASD
oﬃcials and peers, and building the types of
relationships that lead to new breakthroughs.
I can't imagine any other place to be during the 1st week of January than at AIAA
SciTech 2015.”
SciTech will also be coming to San Diego in 2016! [Source: AIAA SciTech 2015] The San Diego Flyer Vol. 11, Issue 2
Page 2 of 6
AIAA-SD Newsletter
December 2014
San Diego Air & Space
Museum Holds Annual Hall
of Fame Dinner
On November 1, the San Diego Air and Space
Museum honored the accomplishments of
several famed air and space pioneers at the
musuem’s Hall of Fame Dinner. The award recipients at the dinner included Joe
Engle, Fitz Fulton, Bill Boeing Jr., John “Jack” R.
Dailey, Roger Schaufele, Bessie Coleman, The
Ninety-Nies pilot organization, and the WD-40
company. Don Wildman, Host of the Travel
Channel's Mysteries at the Museum was also
this year's guest speaker. He spoke of the
significance of museums and the risk-takers in
history. The people and organizations honored
at the dinner are some of the world’s most
significant aviation pilots, crew members,
visionaries, inventors, aerospace engineers, business leaders, designers, spokesmen,
and space pioneers. This dinner, held annually, highlighted the importance of
technology and innovation.
Click [here] to learn more about the people inducted into the 2014 hall of fame. You
can also find out about more events at the San Diego Air and Space museum at their
website, click [here]. [Source: San Diego Air & Space Museum]
Call for AIAA Papers
Image: Fitz Fulton
given his award by
previous Honoree
Harry Robertson at
the Hall of Fame
Dinner [Image Source:
The San Diego Air &
Space Museum Press
Release]
Will you be presenting a paper at an upcoming AIAA conference? If you will be
presenting a paper at an upcoming AIAA conference, AIAA San Diego would like to
host your presentation and invite you to present your paper at an upcoming section
meeting. Contact [email protected] for more information.
AIAA-SD Volunteers at High Tech 2014
On October 21st and 22nd, the AIAA San Diego Section participated in the 2014 High
Tech Fair. This fair was attended by thousands of middle and high school students
interested in STEM. The AIAA-SD booth was quite popular as we showcased some
consumer UAVs, do-it-yourself UAVs, and do-it-yourself ground control stations. Our
goal was to encourage students to explore the complexity of creating systems that fly
and the subsequent enjoyment (fun) that is experienced once complete. The students were also able to meet our scientists and engineers who volunteered at
the event. AIAA-SD would like to thank Brianna MacNider, Ken Kubarych, Maria
Catalina, and Chris McEachin for their support during the fair. [Credit: Cesar Martin]
The San Diego Flyer Vol. 11, Issue 2
Page 3 of 6
AIAA-SD Newsletter
December 2014
F-35C Completes Sea
Trials aboard Carrier
Naval Air Forces Public Aﬀairs reported that
the F-35C Lightning II carrier variant Joint
Strike Fighter completed its first phase of
developmental test (DT) aboard an aircraft
carrier Nov. 14, three days ahead of
schedule aboard USS Nimitz.
Image: F-35C makes a
successful arrested
landing aboard the
aircraft carrier USS
Nimitz [Image Source:
Naval Air Forces]
The aircraft demonstrated exceptional
performance throughout its initial sea trails,
accelerating the team's progress through
the DT-I schedule and enabling them to
conduct night operations - a milestone
typically achieved during the second at-sea
phase of developmental tests. Successful
carrier landings of the F-35C also point to
an eﬀective re-design of the once-troubled tail hook.
The goal of DT-I, the first of three at-sea test phases planned for the F-35C, was to
collect environmental data through added instrumentation to measure the F-35C's
integration to flight deck operations and to further define the F-35C's operating
parameters aboard the aircraft carrier. A thorough assessment of how well the F-35C
operated in the shipboard environment will advise the Navy of any adjustments
necessary to ensure that the fifth-generation fighter is fully capable and ready to
deploy to the fleet in 2018. To view the full article, click [here]. [Credit: Naval Air Forces Public Aﬀairs]
Predator/Gray Eagle Surpass 3 Million Flight Hours
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. announced in October that its Predator
and Gray Eagle-series aircraft family has achieved a historic company and industry
milestone: three million flight hours, which is the equivalent of flying over 340 years,
around-the-clock, every day. The identification of the specific aircraft and customer
that achieved the milestone is unknown as every second of every day over 68 GA-ASI
aircraft are airborne worldwide.
GA-ASI aircraft are currently logging nearly 50,000 flight hours a month supporting
the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, NASA, the
Italian Air Force, the Royal Air Force, the French Air Force, and other customers.
Missions include helping protect warfighters in world hot spots; assisting border
agents in monitoring the nation's borders; aiding first responders in the wake of
natural disasters; and supporting scientists in performing Earth science missions.
To read the full article, click the link [here]. [Credit: GA-ASI News and Information] The San Diego Flyer Vol. 11, Issue 2
Page 4 of 6
AIAA-SD Newsletter
December 2014
New Global Hawk Support
Contract for Northrop
Grumman
Richard Tomkins reported in a UPI news article
that the U.S. Air Force RQ-4 Global Hawk
remotely controlled autonomous aircraft will
continue to receive Northrop Grumman
logistics and sustainment services. The UPI
article quotes Mick Jaggers, Global Hawk
director at Northrop Grumman Aerospace
Systems: "In a turbulent world, Global Hawk's
unparalleled reliability has made it an
indispensable asset to the U.S. Air Force. Our
team takes great pride in supporting the
warfighter with an aircraft system that is ready and available whenever and wherever
it's needed."
As with the earlier Global Hawk contract award, the company will provide
maintenance, inventory management, parts procurement and other tasks to ensure
aircraft availability. The services will cover mission control and forward operating
location support as well as the aircraft. Image: Air Force
personnel prep an
RQ-4 Global Hawk for
flight (U.S. Air Force
photo) [Image Source:
UPI News]
You can read more of this article by clicking the link [here]. [Credit: Richard Tomkins,
UPI Security Industry News]
Advertisement
space available!
THE SAN DIEGO FLYER NOW HAS
SPACE AVAILABLE FOR
ADVERTISEMENTS.
THERE ARE OPPORTUNITIES FOR
BOTH TEXT AND PHOTO ADS.
PLEASE EMAIL THE NEWSLETTER
EDITOR FOR MORE INFO.
EMAIL:
[email protected]
Get Involved with AIAA-SD!
All of our dinner meetings are open to
everyone, even those who are not members
(but members get a discount!). Check our
website and Facebook for information about
future events, and feel free to share our
emails, newsletters, and flyers to your friends
and colleagues. If you or your company would like to help
AIAA San Diego by hosting talks,
presentations, tours, etc., please contact us.
We are always looking for aerospace
speakers and venues to host our meetings.
You can also become involved by joining the
council! The Educator Associate position is still open. Please contact the San Diego
Section Chair at [email protected] for more information. The San Diego Flyer Vol. 11, Issue 2
Page 5 of 6
AIAA-SD Newsletter
December 2014
AIAA San Diego Section
2014-2015 Council Members
Cesar Martin
Chair
Naval Air Systems Command
Joel Perez
Treasurer
Solar Turbines
Kathy Kucharski
Vice Chair – Planning
Naval Air Systems Command
Jon Blackler
Vice Chair -Technical
San Diego Composites
Martin Miller
Secretary
Space and Naval Warfare
Systems Command
Kevin Burns
AIAA National Conference
Coordinator
Northrop Grumman –
Information Systems
Chris Root
Professional Society Liaison
Naval Air Systems Command
Ioana Broome
Young Professionals
General Atomics Aeronautical
Systems Inc.
The San Diego Flyer Vol. 11, Issue 2
Stevie Jacobson
Webmaster
General Atomics Aeronautical
Systems Inc.
Brianna MacNider
UCSD Chair
University of California – San
Diego (UCSD)
Robin Felver
Newsletter Editor
The Boeing Company
Dr. Mark Anderson
UCSD Faculty Advisor
University of California – San
Diego (UCSD)
Keith Glassman
Honors & Awards / Career
Enhancement
Naval Air Systems Command
Daniel Silva
SDSU Chair
San Diego State University
Jay Woodard
Field Trips
Agile Systems Inc.
Nagy Nosseir
SDSU Faculty Advisor
San Diego State University
Chris McEachin
Student Activities
HCL America / Pratt & Whitney
AeroPower
John Kurcharski
Public Policy
Continental DataGraphics (CDG)
/ Boeing
Marcia Crawford
Program Arrangements
UTC Aerospace Systems
Brian Quan
Membership Development
Coordinator
Continental DataGraphics (CDG)
/ Boeing
Greg Marien
RHF Scholarship Chair
Northrop Grumman – Aerospace
Systems
Phil Smith
K-12 STEM Outreach
Adaptive Launch Solutions
Fletcher Hartshorn
History & Bylaws
General Atomics Aeronautical
Systems Inc.
VACANT
Educator Associate Page 6 of 6