Dr. Jeffrey DeCarlo
Administrator
MassDOT Aeronautics Division

Dr. Jeffrey DeCarlo is the MassDOT Aeronautics Division Administrator tasked with providing statutory and regulatory oversight for all aviation matters in the Commonwealth, including safety, security, airport development, and UAS programs.
Jeff has more than 30 years of aviation operations and consulting experience with the military, industry, academia and government. An experienced principal investigator, he led NASA sponsored air traffic control and airport operations R & D; and has supported aviation systems acquisition activities for the DoD.
A former U.S. Air Force and airline pilot with over 10,000 hours in fighter and commercial aircraft, he is a graduate of Fighter Weapons School. Jeff retired from the military as a Lt. Colonel following nearly 25 years of USAF active duty, Air National Guard and Reserve service.
He sits on the Board of Directors of the Northeast UAS Airspace Integration Research Alliance (NUAIR), the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) New England, and the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO), and also serves as Chair for the NASAO Center for Aviation Research and Education.

Jeff Adams
Co-Founder, UAS Development
President, AUVSI New England

Jeff joined AUVSI in 2013 looking for industry connections and partnerships as he and his partners launch UAS Development Inc, a small UAS R&D firm focused on localized remote pilot systems for enhanced payload and mission requirements.

UAS Development continues to explore solutions for sophisticated and demanding vehicle/asset integrations and provides engineering design services along with systems validation testing with a variety of air-frame platforms.

Jeff was appointed AUVSI New England Chapter President in 2017, and serves on several technology advisory groups, including the national Unmanned Maritime Advisory Council.

Noel Zamot
Revitalization Coordinator
Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico

Noel Zamot is the Revitalization Coordinator for the Financial Oversight and Management Board (FOMB) for Puerto Rico. He is responsible for accelerating the island’s economic recovery by bringing private capital to revitalize Puerto Rico’s critical infrastructure, in order to create jobs and set the conditions for sustainable growth. Mr. Zamot manages the Critical Projects Process under Title V of the PR Oversight, Management and Economic Stability Act (PROMESA). This initiative currently has $7B of infrastructure projects under consideration for designation and implementation.

Mr. Zamot also provides oversight for the fiscal plan development process for Puerto Rico’s Electric Power Authority and Aqueducts Authority, which set the conditions for sustainable growth and effective operations for the island’s future.

Prior to his appointment to the FOMB, Mr. Zamot was an entrepreneur and executive in the aerospace industry. He was the founding partner of Corvus Analytics LLC, a consulting firm helping businesses manage cyber risk and design cyber resilient systems. Corvus led teams that created an innovation accelerator for unmanned systems on behalf of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, developed and taught methods to evaluate military systems against cyber threats for the US Air Force, and supported several industry efforts in autonomy and robotics.

As an executive in the aerospace industry he managed profit/loss operations valued at $230M for a major defense contractor, providing complex technical solutions to customers in the Federal Government. He has developed and implemented strategies for revenue growth and market segmentation, crafted a strategic roadmap for firm-wide contract transition, and led his
teams to win back-to-back business performance awards. He has led consulting engagements for federal and state agencies, aerospace firms, nonprofits and NGOs.

Before entering private industry, Mr. Zamot served as a colonel in the U.S. Air Force. He finished his active duty career as commander of the USAF’s elite Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, California. In that role he crafted the service’s initial framework for testing military systems in contested cyberspace, and developed the first formal curriculum to train military drone test pilots. 

He is a sailplane pilot, an avid triathlete, and speaks frequently on the challenges and opportunities related to investment in Puerto
Rico.

Chad Council
Regional Geospatial Coordinator
FEMA

Chad Council is the Regional Geospatial Coordinator for FEMA Region 1, where he provides GIS support to the region’s deliberate planning efforts and coordinates GIS and remote sensing activities during federal disaster responses in New England. 
 
Since joining the FEMA Region 1 Response Division in 2012, Chad has actively participated in national level working groups focused on technology integration, modeling, field data collection, remote sensing and unmanned aerial systems.
 
Prior to joining Region 1, Chad worked as a software developer and an independent technical consultant.  His prior disaster response experience includes 12 years as a technical specialist with Massachusetts Task Force 1 Urban Search & Rescue.
 
Chad earned a BS in Computer Science from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in 1994 and an MS in Emergency Management from Massachusetts Maritime Academy in 2012.

Ryan Coates

Manager of Policy, Regulations and Stakeholder Engagement
Transport Canada UAS Task Force

Ryan Coates is the Manager of Policy, Regulations and Stakeholder Engagement with Transport Canada’s UAS Task Force. Ryan joined Transport Canada in 2008 and has been instrumental in shaping public policy, implementing legislative change and advancing priorities within Transport Canada’s Civil Aviation and Marine Safety and Security programs. He has built on this experience and is currently providing policy leadership as Transport Canada implements its UAS strategy. 

Ryan holds a Master’s Degree in Public Policy and Public Administration from Concordia University in Montréal, Québec.

Dr. Waseem Naqvi
Chief Technology Officer
Raytheon, ISS

Dr. Waseem Naqvi is the CTO (Technology Director) for Raytheon’s (NYSE: RTN) Intelligence, Information and Services (IIS) Unmanned Vehicle Systems business. He is responsible for defining business strategy, capability, technology and investment priorities addressing future unmanned and autonomous systems. Raytheon is a leader in unmanned vehicle control systems and has provided the Ground Control Systems, and Mission Planning Systems for Global Hawk, BAMS, Fire Scout and other UxS. Raytheon develops sensors, surveillance, communications, command and control and vehicle control systems and cyber solutions into the Unmanned Systems industry.
Dr. Naqvi is an active contributor to the Autonomous Vehicle and Robotics Industry. He is a member of the Board of Directors for the Association for Unmanned Systems International (AUVSI) New England Chapter, and is its past-President. Waseem is Vice President and a member of the Board of Directors for the Northeast UAS Airspace Integration Research Alliance (NUAIR), a FAA UAS Test Site. He is a past Board member for AUVSI Headquarters, and also represented all 36 chapter Presidents. He previously served on the advisory board for the Massachusetts Robotics Sector. He is a Principal Global Business Leader for the International Executive Resource Group (IERG), and serves on its leadership team.

Edward “Ted” Lester
Lead Systems Engineer
The MITRE Corporation

Ted Lester is a Lead Systems Engineer at The MITRE Corporation in Bedford, Massachusetts.  He supports the United States Air Force Common Airborne Sense and Avoid (C-ABSAA) program, is co-chair of the UAS EXCOM Science and Research Panel (SARP), conducts research on UAS safety and certification for the Air Force and FAA, and participates in numerous standards committees related to UAS and cooperative surveillance systems.

He is currently serving as co-chair of the RTCA Special Committee 228 Detect and Avoid (DAA) working group. Prior to MITRE, Mr. Lester worked as a general aviation avionics Product Manager and as a Systems Engineer at Avidyne Corporation in Lincoln, Massachusetts. 

He holds a B.A. from Middlebury College majoring in physics and an S.M. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Aeronautics and Astronautics, where he worked in the International Center for Air Transportation (MIT ICAT). 

Mr. Lester is an avid cyclist and pilot, FAA Certified Flight Instructor – Instrument (CFII), and part owner of two Cessna airplanes.

Lieutenant Colonel Randy “Laz” Gordon
Test and Evaluation Lead
US Air Force, AFWERX

Lieutenant Colonel Randy “Laz” Gordon, PhD is a decorated, multi-discipline leader with a demonstrated 20-year track record of professional excellence.  He is the Test and Evaluation Lead for the US Air Force’s AFWERX Technology Venture Partner initiative.  Prior to this, he was a Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Harvard Business School.  

He commanded a developmental flight test force consisting of 330+ contractor, civilian, and military personnel responsible for modernization of the F-22A Raptor. In that role, he managed a $37 Million annual operating budget and oversaw $1.6+ Billion in national security assets. Prior to his command assignment, he led future capabilities, innovation, and experimentation for the US Pacific Command. There he managed a $2.5+ Billion dollar portfolio of advanced technology programs. Furthermore, he developed state of the art aerospace technologies as an experimental test pilot with experience in the F-22A, F-15C/E, A-10A/C, and the Bombardier BD-700 Global Express business jet as well as 70 other military and civilian aircraft. He also is a combat veteran with several air medal decorations from combat missions in support of Operations NORTHERN WATCH and ENDURING FREEDOM.  

Laz holds a Strategy PhD and Masters of Philosophy (summa cum laude) from the USAF School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, as well as a graduate aeronautical engineering degree and mathematics/systems engineering studies (magna cum laude) from the Air Force Institute of Technology and United States Air Force Academy. He was competitively selected as a Presidential Fellow, MIT Lincoln Labs Military Fellow, DARPA US Air Force Service Chief Fellow, two-time White House Fellow finalist, USAF Thunderbirds Commander finalist, and NASA Astronaut finalist.

He is a published writer for Air & Space Smithsonian/Flying magazine, mentors children, and serves as an award winning public speaker/published photographer. 

Scott Gardner
Acting Manager
FAA Emerging Technologies, UAS Tactical Operations

Scott Gardner is the FAA Acting Manager, Emerging Technologies, UAS Tactical Operations.  He is responsible for overseeing coordination and approvals for unmanned aircraft airspace access in the National Airspace System (NAS).

Scott has been with the Federal Aviation Administration for approximately 9 years and with the Emerging Technologies office since 2011.  He assumed the Emerging Technologies acting manager role in June 2016.  Prior to joining the Emerging Technologies office, he was an Air Traffic Security Specialist in the FAA’s Domestic Events Network (DEN), coordinating the FAA’s response to domestic real-time aviation security events.  

Scott is also a retired Colonel with the Air Force Reserve, serving as an Emergency Preparedness Liaison Officer (EPLO) with the National Security Emergency Program (NSEP).  He also served as an Air Traffic Control Officer in both the active Air Force and the Air National Guard.
Scott earned a Master’s in Business Administration from Boston University and a Bachelor’s in Business Administration from the University of Maine-Augusta and an Associate’s from Plymouth State College in Plymouth, NH. 

Gregory S. Woo, Ph.D.
Division Chief, Aviation Systems Engineering, US DOT/Volpe Center

Dr. Gregory Woo manages the Aviation Systems Engineering division at the U.S. DOT Volpe Center. He has more than 30 years of broad experience encompassing data center management, information technology and network management, risk management, and leadership of technical research and new product development programs.  He has led a wide variety of projects at the Volpe Center ranging from Air Traffic Control systems engineering and acquisition program management projects, to risk management and safety assessment exercises, to testing of instrumentation and technology for low-visibility operations in the airport terminal environment.

Woo is a volunteer member of the FAA’s New England Safety Team, serving as a safety counselor and stage check pilot in the general aviation industry. He holds an Airline Transport Pilot certificate for multi-engine aircraft and is type-rated in the Boeing 737NG. He also holds an FAA Remote Pilot certificate. Woo is an active flight instructor training general aviation pilots to safely operate technically advanced aircraft with advanced automation and flight management systems.  Woo also serves as a member of the Unmanned Aircraft Safety Team (UAST) supporting the uncontrolled flight risk identification and mitigation workgroup.

Woo has a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Yale University, a master’s degree in organizational management and development from Fielding Graduate University, and a Ph.D. from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University with a focus on aviation safety, safety management systems, and human factors. His dissertation examined the limits of human performance in the visual detection of small unmanned aircraft.
 

Jeffrey DeCoux
President/Chief Executive Officer
Hangar Technology, Inc.

Jeffrey DeCoux is a Founder and the Chief Executive Officer of Hangar Technology, Inc. With the unprecedented advancement in autonomous robotics, Hangar was founded to
leverage these new innovations within a scalable software platform. Hangar is digitizing the world by enabling autonomous robotics across Industry, executing complex sensor capture while integrating advanced algorithms, edge computing, computer vision and machine learning. Hangar works with the leading ENR400 companies that focus on construction, infrastructure, telecommunications and mega-projects worldwide.

As a Founder/Investor, Mr. DeCoux works with emerging technology companies
with financing, technology and industry leadership. He has over 20 years experience
within the high-tech industries where his attention has been focused on visionary ways of interacting with customers and enhancing business productivity through automation.

In his prior experience, Mr. DeCoux was President and CEO of eCustomers, Inc. a leading provider of Enterprise Customer Response software. The eCustomers software drastically reduced the costs relating to customer engagements by personalizing the experience. eCustomers raised over $30 million in financing and developed a leadership Board that included visionaries Allan Loren (Executive VP at American Express); Bobby Martin (President of Walmart International); Lou Hughes (President of GM International) and Gerald Storch (Vice Chairman of Target). eCustomers was acquired in 2002.

Mr. DeCoux holds a deep knowledge of the technology industry and a life long
passion for innovation. He enjoys working with young engineers that have a passion
for a new innovation or product advancement. He also has a passion for hands on technology, embedded systems like Raspberry PI, BeagleBone or Edison, robotics, and most of all - anything autonomous. He serves as Director for his Community Association, an organization he created to properly manage its operations.

Matthew Kling
Kostas Research Institute
Northeastern University

Matthew Kling is a Research Engineer/Scientist working at KRI at Northeastern University, LLC where he leads the operation of the Northeastern Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Lab at the Innovation Campus in Burlington, MA. In this position he collaborates with academia, industry and government to conduct cutting edge research in unmanned systems in areas such as Counter-UAS and autonomy.  He focuses on developing innovative solutions and has an extensive background in real-time embedded systems, system architecture, systems engineering and system integration/test.  His professional certifications include TOGAF and Zachman enterprise architecture.  He obtained a MS in Systems Engineering 2006 and a BS in Electrical Engineering in 2002, both from WPI.  His career began at Raytheon in 2002 as a software engineer for SATCOM/Radar systems.  During his 15 years there he became a technical leader for several major military SATCOM systems where he was considered an expert in domains such as communication waveforms, RF systems, real-time embedded systems, security engineering/cyber, and system architecture/requirements.  Additionally, he has published several papers and applied for/received patents for remote control systems and security devices.

R. John Hansman
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
T. Wilson Professor of Aeronautics & Astronautics

R. John Hansman is the T. Wilson Professor of Aeronautics & Astronautics at MIT, where he is the Director of the MIT International Center for Air Transportation.  He conducts research in advanced technologies for operational aerospace systems. 

Professor Hansman led the founding Beaverworks capstone project class and has led several student driven innovative UAV designs including LOCUST/Perdix, Jungle Hawk Owl and Firefly.  Dr. Hansman holds 7 patents and has authored over 300 technical publications.  He has over 6000 hours of pilot in-command time in airplanes, helicopters and sailplanes including meteorological, production and engineering flight test experience. 

Professor Hansman chairs the US Federal Aviation Administration Research Engineering & Development Advisory Committee (REDAC). He is co-director of the national Center of Excellence in Aviation Sustainability Center (ASCENT). He is a member of the US National Academy of Engineering (NAE), is a Fellow of the AIAA and has received numerous awards including the AIAA Dryden Lectureship in Aeronautics Research, the ATCA Kriske Air Traffic Award, a Laurel from Aviation Week & Space Technology, and the FAA Excellence in Aviation Award.

Alex Slawsby
Director of Innovation
EmbraerX

Alex is Director of Innovation for EmbraerX in Boston. EmbraerX is the disruptive innovation team within Embraer, the third largest producer of civil aircraft in the world. In his role, Alex is responsible for identifying and accelerating new technologies and business models emerging from the Greater Boston innovation ecosystem that have the potential to transform or even disrupt Embraer’s core businesses.

Prior to joining Embraer, Alex spent ten years guiding large corporations to develop innovation strategies, build innovation capabilities and launch internal, customer-centric, lean startups. During that time, Alex worked for Innosight, Clayton Christensen’s disruptive innovation consultancy and as an independent consultant. Prior to attending MIT, Alex worked for IDC as a wireless industry analyst.

Alex has an undergraduate degree from Brown University and an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Mike Mester
Lead Researcher and Analyst - eVTOL Transportation
Boston Consulting Group

Mike Mester joined the Chicago office of The Boston Consulting Group as an Associate in the summer of 2009. He is a core member of the firm's Aerospace & Defense practice.

Mike has supported a series of projects on aftermarket business strategy for a major aviation systems manufacturer, including commercial aviation sustainment / aftermarket profit pool analysis, services pricing and growth, M&A support and strategy across program lifetime stages. He is currently leading a study on electric vertical takeoff and landing  (eVTOL) transport markets.

He holds an MBA from Stanford, where he was a Siebel Scholar and an Arjay Miller Scholar. He received his B.S. summa cum laude with distinction in the major of Computer Science from Yale College.

Scott A. Uebelhart, PhD
Chief Scientist, Drone Program
MassDOT Aeronautics

Scott A. Uebelhart, PhD supports MassDOT Aeronautics as Chief Scientist of the Drone Program, laying out the strategy and planning to adopt drones across MassDOT. Prior to this, Dr. Uebelhart was an early employee of technology startup, and was on the technical staff at MIT Lincoln Laboratory. There, he conducted systems analysis of U.S. space architectures for the Air Force, analyzing missions, requirements, and solutions to technical challenges, and provided recommendations to senior government decision makers. Before that, Dr. Uebelhart was a postdoctoral associate with MIT's Program in Science, Technology and Society, where he established the cross-disciplinary Space, Policy, and Society research group, applied MIT technical expertise to questions of human spaceflight space policy, and briefed senior Congressional and NASA leaders. Scott earned his SB, SM and PhD from the MIT Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

Rodney Cole
Assistant Group Leader of the Surveillance Systems
MIT Lincoln Lab

Rodney Cole started his career at MIT Lincoln Laboratory in the early 1990s developing windshear detection algorithms and systems for the FAA, continuing on to lead various teams in weather analysis and weather prediction for both FAA and NASA programs.

Rod has taken programs from initial concept through field testing to technology transfer to industry and operations in the NAS. He has also led an algorithm team developing space surveillance algorithms. Over the past nine years, he has led the Laboratory’s portfolio of FAA, NASA, DoD and DHS UAS airspace integration programs.

He is currently an Assistant Group Leader of the Surveillance Systems Group where he is helping to lead a broad portfolio of programs focused on aviation safety and efficiency. Rod has a math and physics background with a PhD in mathematics.

Philippe Labouchère, Ph.D.
Project Leader for Innovation and Entrepreneurship
swissnex Boston

Philippe holds a MSc and BSc in Physics from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETHZ). After having explored the mysteries of quantum cryptography during his studies, he did an internship at the Science & Technology office at the Embassy of Switzerland in Tokyo, Japan, where he got acquainted with the swissnex network.

Upon his return home, he started a doctoral program with Prof. Grätzel at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), during which he worked on next-generation dye-sensitized solar cells. After having completed his Ph.D., Philippe moved to London and worked in the field of artificial intelligence applied to online marketing.

In 2017, he joined the swissnex Boston team to foster the exchanges between Switzerland and the Greater Boston Area in the fields of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Terrence McKenna
Senior Program Manager: Drone Pilot Program
MassDOT

Terrence McKenna supports MassDOT Aeronautics as the Senior Program Manager for the Drone Pilot Program. In this role, he oversees the integration of UAS into all facets of the Commonwealth's operations by bringing together disparate but mutually beneficial ecosystems within the State.

Mr. McKenna comes from a rich background of both technical and operational UAS development serving as technical and programmatic leads for a variety of programs at Aurora Flight Sciences for over a decade. He has worked closely with the Air Force Research Lab, DARPA, and NASA to develop autonomous aerial solutions for the needs of the warfighter. He augments extensive UAS experience with work on the manned side of aviation by serving in the U.S. Air Force as a C-5M Super Galaxy Pilot at Westover Air Reserve Base.

Mr. McKenna earned his SB in Aerospace Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and holds a Fixed Wing Multi-Engine Commercial/Instrument, Seaplane, and Remote Pilot's License.