Justin is the Vice President of Government Relations and Strategic Partnerships at ThinkOrbital. He retired as a Colonel after 21 years serving in the Department of the Air Force and was instrumental in the standup of the US Space Force. He is a combat pilot and has experience in commercial space launch and operations.

Justin is a graduate of the United States Air Force’s Air War College, the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, Harvard University, and the Air Command and Staff College. Col Chandler was commissioned into the Air Force upon graduating from the United States Air Force Academy in 2003.  While stationed at Dyess Air Force Base he won the Gen. George Trophy for best C-130/C-160 crew and the Gen Allen Trophy for best Airdrop Team at the 2007 Air Mobility Command Rodeo.  At Pope Field he was named the 2011 Pope Field CGO of the Year.  He has deployed multiple times in the C-130E, C-130H, and KC-10.  Col Chandler has participated in Operations ENDURING FREEDOM, IRAQI FREEDOM, UNIFIED RESPONSE, and HORN OF AFRICA.  In 2012 he was selected for the prestigious Phoenix Reach program transitioning to the KC-10. He was an architect of the Pilot Training Next initiative reimagining pilot training utilizing virtual reality, data analytics, biometrics, and human performance data. In 2019, Col Chandler was one of three officers selected to attend USAF Space Officer Training to develop multi-domain leaders for the service. Following Squadron Command, he served at SpaceX as a Space Operations Engineer helping to launch astronauts from the United States for the first time since 2011. Col Chandler has served most recently on the Space Force Headquarters Staff as the Director of the Strategic Initiatives Group where he was crucial in the standup and growth of the new service. He is a Senior Pilot with over 1,900 flying hours in the C-130 and KC-10, including over 650 combat hours. He has commanded at the squadron level and served in multiple positions at the USAF and USSF headquarters, MAJCOM, wing, group, and squadron levels.