About Us

The SPST (1991 – Present) is a team of National Propulsion Multidiscipline experts (Research and Technologist, Concept and Design Development, Testing and Operations, and Program Management) with extensive Contractor, Government and Academic experience assembled to ‘bridge the communication gap’ between technology developers and users.

This photo shows the Space Propulsion Synergy Team at NASA-Marshall Space Flight Center in front of the Propulsion Research Development Center – building 4205 in 2004.

SPST MEMBERS_AIAA ASAT CONFERENCE – November 2019

A small group of SPST members in attendance at the 16th Annual Aerospace & Systems Technology Conference

From Left to Right:
Isaiah C. Navarro, Ken MacLeod, John Robinson, Dr. Jim Martin, and Cherie Johnston

WHAT SPST HAS TO OFFER

PLEASE SEE SPST Professional Bios AT BOTTOM OF THIS WEBPAGE
All members are dedicated to improving Cost, Safety, Reliability, Operability, and Responsiveness required to achieve the key Government Goals for Space Transportation
All members have extensive personal technical communication networks
SPST members are very open minded team players capable of out-of-the-box thinking and are sensitive to the Government’s (NASA) needs and concerns
Many have vast libraries of past performance, cost, and operational information that NASA, Industry and other Governmental organizations have difficulty in acquiring and applying
SPST members (many retired) have proven that they will invest time and talent to be beneficial to NASA, Industry and other Governmental organizations having a strong need of this extensive knowledge and experience dating from Post WW II
SPST team members grew up with the development and application of the classical “Systems Engineering Process”
All have “Real” space systems design, development and launch operations experience Several have been through the entire systems acquisition process – some more than once!

SPST PRESENT LEADERSHIP
The SPST has the following Officers & Representatives: The individuals listed DO NOT express the views of companies and organizations associated with their present or past employment, but only to provide a means of identification and credibility to the SPST organization.

Chairman – John W. Robinson of Huntington Beach, CA, (Retired) Boeing
Executive Assistant – Russel Rhodes of Indian Harbour Beach, FL, (Retired)
NASA-KSC NASA-JSC representative – Edward (Mack) Henderson of Houston, TX (Retired)
NASA-Historian – Dave Christensen of Huntsville, AL
SPST Web Master – Douglas G. Thorpe of Mt. Sterling, KY

SPST Professional Bios

Here is a photo of the 2012 retirement of SPST founder, Russ Rhodes, after 50 years with NASA-KSC and 2 years before that with ABMA (ARMY BALLISTIC MISSILE AGENCY) operations at Cape Canaveral, FL. Also pictured with Russ are many members of the SPST who can’t be identified because they still work for NASA.

SPST Previous Leadership
SPST Steering Group Chairmen

SPACE PROPULSION SYNERGY TEAM ORGANIZATION
SPACE PROPULSION SYNERGY TEAM ORGANIZATION as of 19 January 2004

SPST History
Story of the Space Propulsion Synergy Team
History as to How the Quality Functional Deployment (QFD) was used to formulate the HRST DESIGN GUIDE

SPST Charter Diagram
The SPST Charter Diagram shows an organization that Emphasizes Flexibility, Communication, Relevance

NACA’s Special Committee on Space Technology
The NACA was replaced by NASA in 1958.
The last administrator of NACA was none other than Gen. Jimmy Doolittle.
Here is a photo on NACA’s Special Committee on Space Technology

NACA chairmen

George P. Scriven (United States Army) (1915–1916)
William F. Durand (Stanford University) (1916–1918)
John R. Freeman (consultant) (1918–1919)
Charles Doolittle Walcott (Smithsonian Institution) (1920–1927)
Joseph Sweetman Ames (Johns Hopkins University) (1927–1939)
Vannevar Bush (Carnegie Institution) (1940–1941)
Jerome C. Hunsaker (Navy, MIT) (1941–1956)
James H. Doolittle (Shell Oil) (1957–1958)