Aerospace Advisory Council

Purpose

The purpose of the Aerospace Advisory Council is to advise the Governor on policy and funding priorities to promote aerospace and space exploration industry in the Commonwealth. The Joint Commission on Technology and Science, and the Secretaries of Commerce and Trade, Technology, and Education on policy and funding priorities with respect to aerospace economic development, workforce training, educational programs, and educational curriculum. The Council shall suggest strategies to attract and promote the development of existing aerospace companies, new aerospace companies, federal aerospace agencies, aerospace research, venture and human capital, and applied research and technology that contribute to the growth and development of the aerospace sector in the Commonwealth.

Term

Legislative members and ex officio members shall serve terms coincident with their terms of office. Other members shall be appointed for terms of two years. Appointments to fill vacancies, other than by expiration of a term, shall be for the unexpired terms. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments. All members may be reappointed.

Composition

The Council shall have a total membership of twenty members that shall consist of four legislative members, nine non legislative citizen members, and seven ex officio members. Members shall be appointed as follows: three members of the House of Delegates to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates in accordance with the principles of proportional representation contained in the Rules of the House of Delegates; one member of the Senate, to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules; and nine non legislative citizen members, of whom one shall represent the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, one shall represent Old Dominion University, one shall represent the University of Virginia, one shall represent Virginia Tech, and five shall represent aerospace companies or suppliers within the Commonwealth, to be appointed by the Governor, and serve with voting privileges. The Director of the Department of Aviation, Director of the National Institute of Aerospace, President and CEO of the Virginia Tourism Authority, Director of the Virginia Space Grant Consortium, and President and CEO of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, or their designees, shall serve as ex officio members with voting privileges. A representative of NASA Wallops Flight Facility and a representative of NASA's Langley Research Center shall be requested to serve by the Governor as ex officio members with non-voting privileges. Non legislative citizen members of the Council shall be citizens of the Commonwealth.

Vacant Seats

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Current Board Members

Member:Dr. Yiannis Papelis
Seat: Old Dominion University Representative
End Date:6/30/2026
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Member:Nicholas Devereux
Seat: Aerospace Company or Supplier Representative
End Date:6/30/2026
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Member:Dr. Christopher Goyne
Seat: University of Virginia Representative
End Date:6/30/2026
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Member:Mr. Thomas D. Jones
Seat: Virginia Tech Representative
End Date:6/30/2026
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Member:James Gilmore
Seat: Aerospace Company or Supplier Representative
End Date:6/30/2026
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Member:Joseph Hanson Oyler
Seat: Aerospace Company or Supplier Representative
End Date:6/30/2026
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Member:Kurt D. Eberly
Seat: Aerospace Company or Supplier Representative
End Date:6/30/2026
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Member:Jill Mills
Seat: Aerospace Company or Supplier Representative
End Date:6/30/2026
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Member:Major General Roosevelt Mercer
Seat: Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport Representative
End Date:6/30/2026
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