Dr. Rusty Powell has 30+ years’ experience with 25+ years specializing in Program Management, Systems Engineering, and Research and Development (concentrating in Thermal/Fluids systems). With Axient, he is a Fellow and currently serves as the VP, Engineering, overseeing Axient’s Independent Research & Development projects as well as supporting development, implementation, and continuation of engineering technologies and programs in Axient’s Innovation Office. An AIAA Associate Fellow, Rusty serves as the Propulsion & Energy Group Director, overseeing the activities of 13 technical committees focused on various propulsion and energy technologies and systems. He is also a member of The Combustion Institute. Rusty has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Colorado State University, an M.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology, and an earned Ph.D. in Engineering (Mechanical Specialty) with a research focus on combustion. He is a licensed Professional Engineer (Mechanical) in Colorado.