David A. Whelan is an American scientist and engineer. He currently serves as the Senior Vice President and Chief Scientist of

Cubic Corporation Cubic Corporation is an American multinational defense and public transportation equipment manufacturer. It operates two business segments: Cubic Transportation Systems (CTS) and Cubic Mission and Performance Solutions (CMPS). History Cubic C ...

. He is also a member of Virgin Galactic's Space Advisory Board. He is a Professor of the Practice, Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of California, San Diego

Jacobs School of Engineering The Irwin and Joan Jacobs School of Engineering is an undergraduate and graduate-level engineering school offering Bachelor of Science, BS, Bachelor of Arts, BA, Master of Engineering, MEng, Master of Science, MS, Master of Advanced Study, MAS ...

Education

Whelan received his Bachelors of Arts in Physics from

UC San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Sc ...

in 1978. He went on to complete his Masters of Science in 1977 and Ph.D in 1983 from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

Career

Whelan started his career at Northrop where he was one of the key designers of the

B-2 Stealth Bomber The Northrop B-2 Spirit, also known as the Stealth Bomber, is an American heavy strategic bomber, featuring low-observable stealth technology designed to penetrate dense anti-aircraft defenses. A subsonic flying wing with a crew of two, th ...

and contributed to the YF-23 Advanced Tactical Fighter. Since his time at Northrop, he has moved on to positions at other organizations such as the

Hughes Aircraft Company The Hughes Aircraft Company was a major American aerospace and defense contractor founded on February 14, 1934 by Howard Hughes in Glendale, California, as a division of the Hughes Tool Company. The company produced the Hughes H-4 Hercules air ...

, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), and

DARPA The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is a research and development agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the development of emerging technologies for use by the military. Originally known as the Adva ...

. At Hughes, he assumed the role of Program Manager and Chief Scientist working on the B-2's air-to-air radar imaging. At the LLNL, he worked on X-ray lasers and the Advanced Nuclear Weapons program. While at DARPA, he took on the role of the director for the Tactical Technology Office (TTO) and also the acting director for the Sensor Technology Office (STO). He went on to serve as the vice president of engineering and chief technologist for

Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...

. He left Boeing in January 2017. At this time became the Chairman Of The Board at AOSense, a position which he still holds. In October 2020, it was announced that Whelan would be joining

Cubic Cubic may refer to: Science and mathematics * Cube (algebra), "cubic" measurement * Cube, a three-dimensional solid object bounded by six square faces, facets or sides, with three meeting at each vertex ** Cubic crystal system, a crystal system w ...

as the Senior Vice President and Chief Scientist.

Memberships

Whelan was elected to the

National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American Nonprofit organization, nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. It is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), along with the National Academ ...

in 2007. He was elected for his "contributions to and leadership of the field of radar imaging and its application to stealth aircraft." He is a fellow of the

American Physical Society The American Physical Society (APS) is a not-for-profit membership organization of professionals in physics and related disciplines, comprising nearly fifty divisions, sections, and other units. Its mission is the advancement and diffusion of ...

, fellow of the

AIAA The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is a professional society for the field of aerospace engineering. The AIAA is the U.S. representative on the International Astronautical Federation and the International Council of ...

and fellow of the

IEEE The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is an American 501(c)(3) organization, 501(c)(3) public charity professional organization for electrical engineering, electronics engineering, and other related disciplines. The IEEE ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whelan, David A. Year of birth missing (living people) University of California, San Diego faculty American aerospace businesspeople American aviation businesspeople Boeing people University of California, San Diego alumni University of California, Los Angeles alumni Living people