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Biography

UNITED STATES AIR FORCE

LIEUTENANT COLONEL MAX W. YATES

Lt. Col. Max W. “Rowdy” Yates is the Chief of the Space Dominance Division, Space Rapid Capabilities Office (SpRCO), Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. Lt. Col. Yates leads a 12-person division and executes a program portfolio valued at $2 billion to rapidly acquire space warfighter systems (1x ACAT-1 & 2x ACAT-2 programs). He was recently selected to serve as Commander, 23rd Analysis Squadron, Air Force Technical Applications Center, Patrick Air Force Base, Florida, beginning in June 2020.

Lt. Col. Yates was born in Butte, Montana. He received his Dual Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical and mechanical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and was commissioned through the Reserve Officer Training Corps in 2006 as a distinguished graduate. He went on to earn his doctorate in Space Systems Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2017.

During his career, Lt. Col. Yates has led technology development for both the Air Force and NASA through all stages of maturation from basic and applied research at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to flight testing at the Air Force Test Center and NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center. Recognized for his work in rapid acquisitions, he has led multiple programs at AFRL’s Center for Rapid Innovation and Space RCO to develop and deploy operational capabilities that solve urgent warfighter needs in the air and space domain.

EDUCATION

2006 Dual Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical and Mechanical Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY
2006 Distinguished Graduate, Reserve Officer Training Corp, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY
2006 Top Performer (no DG program), Air and Space Basic Course, Maxwell Air Force Base, AL
2011 Master of Science in Astronautical Engineering, Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT), Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio
2013 Distinguished Graduate, Squadron Officer School, Maxwell Air Force Base, AL
2017 Doctor of Philosophy in Space Systems Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA
2018 Distinguished Graduate, College of Naval Command and Staff, U.S. Naval War College, Newport, RI
2018 Master of Arts in Defense and Strategic Studies (Highest Distinction & Honor Graduate), U.S. Naval War College, Newport, RI

ASSIGNMENTS

1. July 2006 – July 2008, Global Hawk Flight Test Engineer (Flight Sciences), 773rd Test Squadron, Edwards AFB, CA.
2. July 2008 – August 2009, Orion Spacecraft Controls and Dynamics Engineer, NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, CA.
3. August 2009 – April 2011, Student, Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright Patterson AFB, OH.
4. April 2011 – March 2013, Deputy Program Manager, Strategic Systems and Launch Technologies, Space Vehicles Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory, Kirtland AFB, NM.
5. March 2013 – August 2014, Program Manager, Center for Rapid Innovation, Air Force Research Laboratory, Kirtland AFB, NM.
6. August 2014 – July 2017, Student, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA.
7. July 2017 – June 2018, Student, College of Naval Command and Staff, Naval War College, Newport, RI.
8. July 2018 – May 2019, Chief Engineer, Space Resiliency Division, Space Rapid Capability Office, Kirtland AFB, NM.
9. May 2019 – pres., Chief, Space Dominance Division, Space Rapid Capabilities Office, Kirtland AFB, NM.

MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS

Air Force Commendation Medal
Air Force Meritorious Service Medal
Air Force Organizational Excellence Award

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS AND AFFILIATIONS

Member, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
Member, Society of Flight Test Engineers

OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS

2019 Gen. George C. Kenney Award for Writing on the Topic of Air Power (2nd Prize), Naval War College
2018 Navy League of the United States’ Adm. William Sowden Sims Award for Top Graduate, Naval War College
2018 Military Officers Association of America Writing Award for Excellence in Joint Warfare (1st Prize), Naval War College
2014 MIT-Lincoln Laboratory Military Fellowship, Lexington, MA
2013 Company Grade Officer of the Year, AFRL
2013 Lance P. Sijan USAF Leadership Award, AFRL
2012 Company Grade Officer of the Year, AFRL/RV (Space Vehicles Directorate)
2011 NASA Group Achievement Award (Orion Abort Flight Test Pad Abort-1 Team)
2011 Top 20 percent graduate, Air Force Institute of Technology
2007 Company Grade Officer of the Year, 412 TW/EN (Test Engineering Group)

MAJOR PUBLICATIONS

Yates, Max, Angles-Only Navigation Technique for Maneuver-Free Spacecraft Proximity Operations, Ph.D. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, September 2017.
Yates, Max, Stochastic Orbit Prediction Using KAM Tori, MS Thesis, Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB OH, March 2011.

EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION

Second Lieutenant June 11, 2006
First Lieutenant June 11, 2008
Captain June 11, 2010
Major October 1, 2016
Lieutenant Colonel October 1,2019

(Current as of December 2019)