Jay G. Santee is vice president, Strategic Space Operations, Defense Systems Group at The Aerospace Corporation. In this role, he leads the company's activities to pivot the nation's space warfighting posture by enabling a substantial, positive shift in the lethality and resilience of U.S. space forces. To fulfill this objective, Santee leads the company's support to the U.S. Space Command, HQ U.S. Space Force, Space Operations Command, Space Training and Readiness Command, the Space Warfare Analysis Center, the Space Security and Defense Program, the Department of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, the Space Rapid Capability Office, the Air Force Research Laboratory, and Project West Wing and the Innovation and Prototyping Directorate of the Space and Missile Systems Center (Space Systems Command shortly) Development Corps.
Prior to joining Aerospace, Santee was outcome leader for Resilient Affordable Space at MITRE, where he was responsible for directing and shaping MITRE’s contributions to the national security space enterprise’s fielding of a resilient, affordable space force.
Santee served 33 years in the United States Air Force, retiring as a major general in 2014. Santee’s last assignment was as deputy director of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. In this capacity, he played a key leadership role in the removal and destruction of declared Syrian chemical weapons materials aboard the MV Cape Ray. Santee’s other assignments in the Air Force included: acting deputy assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy, vice commander of the 14th Air Force, Director of the Space Operations Center (now the Combined Space Operations Center), commander of the 21st Space Wing, and operations division chief at U.S. Space Command.
Education
Santee earned a bachelor’s degree in geography from the U.S. Air Force Academy, an MBA from Golden Gate University, and a master’s degree in national security strategy from the National War College. Santee also completed the Program for Senior Executives in National and International Security at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.
Awards and Honors
Santee was awarded the 2014 Ellis Island Medal of Honor, and was invested as a Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honor), France’s highest honor, in 2012.
Affiliations
Santee serves on the U.S. Strategic Command’s Strategic Advisory Group and is a member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.