Dr. Basil Hassan is a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) and serves as the Institute President (2020–2022). Previously, he served on AIAA’s Board as Director and Vice President from 2008 to2017, and President-Elect from 2019 to2020. He has also served on several national review boards for the National Academies, NASA, DARPA, and Air Force Office of Scientific Research. Since 2004, he has participated as an external member of the NASA Engineering and Safety Center. Basil currently serves on the North Carolina State University’s Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Educational Advisory Board and has served on similar boards for New Mexico State University, Texas A&M University, the University of Texas at Austin, the University of New Mexico, and the Georgia Institute of Technology. He was the 2008 recipient of the AIAA Sustained Service Award and a 2017 recipient of North Carolina State University’s Distinguished Engineering Alumnus Award.
Basil has served in a variety of positions in research and development (R&D) in the areas of aerodynamics and aerothermodynamics of high-speed flight vehicles, drag reduction for low-speed ground transportation vehicles, and high-velocity oxygen fuel thermal sprays. He has overseen all aspects of engineering sciences R&D and applications work at Sandia. Most notably, he helped support NASA in determining the cause of the Space Shuttle Columbiaaccident in 2003 and was part of the team that shut down the Deepwater Horizon oil well after the explosion and spill in 2010.
John currently serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Electra.aero. John is an aerospace entrepreneur who founded Aurora Flight Sciences in 1989, Athena Technologies in 1998, and Electra.aero in 2020. Aurora pioneered advanced robotic aircraft, Athena developed advanced flight control solutions, and Electra is developing sustainable aviation solutions for regional mobility. Athena was sold to Rockwell Collins in 2008 and Aurora was sold to Boeing in 2017.
He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and the immediate past-president of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).
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Dan Dumbacher is the Executive Director of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).
Before joining the AIAA staff in January 2018, Dumbacher was a Professor of Engineering Practice in the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics at Purdue University, where he taught courses in systems thinking, systems engineering, and space policy.
Prior to Purdue, Dumbacher served as the Deputy Associate Administrator, Exploration Systems Development Division, Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters. In that capacity, he provided leadership and management as the Program Director for Exploration Systems Development, which included: the Space Launch System, Orion, and Ground Systems Development and Operations development and integration efforts. He led a national team of over 5,000, spanning all NASA centers and industry, and was responsible for a $3 billion annual budget.
During his career, he has received numerous awards and honors including the coveted Silver Snoopy Award and the NASA Distinguished Service Medal. In 2015, Purdue recognized him with the Gustafson Teaching Award.
Dumbacher earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Purdue University and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. He has also completed the Senior Managers in Government program at Harvard University.
Dumbacher is a native of Indianapolis, Indiana. He and his wife Lee have three grown children.
