Alumni

Wildcats for Life Are Pushing the Limits

At every level of manufacturing, aeronautics and defense, AME alumni are pushing the limits of technology and human progress.

Maybe you built prototypes in the machine shop, or perhaps you met your future business partners at a robotics competition. You’re alumni now. Whether that means getting your startup off the ground or rising through the ranks of Raytheon, Qualcomm or SpaceX, you are crafting the future and helping the next generation of AME students do the same.

Thank you for all you do for UA aerospace and mechanical engineering, for the world, and – someday – for planets near and far.

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Alumni Highlights

UA alum's startup aims to supply engines that put rotorcraft into the skies

Phillip Greenberg, BS AME 2015, is the co-founder of Copperhead Aeronautics, a startup working to commercialize designs for electric vertical take off and landing, or eVTOL, vehicles. He says he first came up with the idea for the tech when he was 11.

A lot of [big companies] are focusing on better batteries. We’re approaching the problem differently, saying, ‘This is the power we have, let’s be more efficient with it.’

UA Talent Helps Local Aerospace Co. Land NASA Grant

Chad Bower, MS in mechanical engineering, 2003, now an engineer at Paragon

I got this job because my professor came in and said, ‘Hey, how would you like to do some contract work for some space cowboys?’ I said, ‘That sounds like fun.

NASA Honors Alum

Joe Martinez, BS mechanical engineering 1992, co-founded the design and fabrication company MaxQ Technology. The company received the NASA Group Achievement Award at the 2019 NASA Honor Awards.

I was honored and privileged to attend the ceremony, as well as impressed by the breadth of achievements by the scientists and engineers at NASA.

NASA Recognizes Record-Breaking Contributions of Alumnus

After earning his bachelor’s degree in AME, Daniel Wibbenwent on to earn his master’s and doctoral degrees in SIE and work on navigation for the OSIRIS-REx mission, first at the UA and then at KinetX Inc. In 2019, he received NASA’s Exceptional Engineering Achievement Medal for his contributions to planetary science.

It’s never gotten dull. There are always new things to be working on, new challenges to face and new problems to solve.

Learning to Work

Rick Whitaker, who earned his bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering in 1969, spent seven years in the Air Force before going on to work for companies such as Dset Laboratories, the DLR Group and Tetra Tech. He’s also a licensed pilot and certified flight instructor.

My education prepared me by showing me I could learn almost anything, if I put in enough work.

Circle of Excellence Award

Ron Rich, BS 1982, worked for Honeywell for more than 30 years before retiring as director of engineering for auxiliary power systems in 2019. The Engineering Design Program awarded him the inaugural Circle of Excellence Award at Design Day 2019.

My education here was critical. Both the technical aspects of it and the hands-on learning that I got to do working with a few of my professors.

Creating New Possibilities for Students

Jake Spauldingserved in the U.S. Army before he came to the UA to study mechanical engineering, but his GI Bill money ran out during his last semester. With the help of scholarships including the Bernard A. and Frances M. Weideman Scholarship and a da Vinci Scholarship, he finished school and got a job as a test engineer for after graduation.

Having that scholarship really drove home being able to push through to the finish line. And they say you can’t get your dream job out of college.

Reach for the Stars

Woody Spring, MS/AE 1974, who trained with astronaut Dick Scobee, another AME alumnus, has made a career out of doing things most people only dream of – including flying 200 miles above Earth at 17,500 miles per hour.

If you want to do it, go for it.