By Daniel Baldwin, PD SAI Public Affairs Specialist |
Incumbent Project Director Sensors-Aerial Intelligence Julie Isaac (right) receives the charter from Brig. Gen. Ed Barker, Program Executive Officer, Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors (center) during a Change of Responsibility on May 14. Isaac is replacing Dennis Teefy whose served as PD SAI from April 2020. [/caption]
Dennis Teefy completed his tenure as the Project Director Sensors-Aerial Intelligence (PD SAI) after passing the charter to his successor, Julie Isaac, on May 14, here at Aberdeen Proving Ground.
First chartered as the PD SAI in April 2020, Teefy was responsible for leading an organization responsible for delivering the Army’s premier aerial, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) sensors to enable the timely dissemination of intelligence products to meet current and future warfighter needs.
“Dennis has been an invaluable member of the PEO IEW&S team. His mentorship and leadership to members of the SAI team has set this organization up for success for years to come,” said Brig. Gen. Ed Barker, Program Executive Officer, Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors (PEO IEW&S), who also hosted the event. “Dennis along with the outstanding SAI team have transformed the portfolio from a counterinsurgency focus to one dedicated to Multi-Domain Operations.”
To meet the Army’s emerging needs, under Teefy’s leadership, PD SAI developed the High Accuracy Detection and Exploitation System (HADES) program. HADES is the first program coming out of the Multi-Domain Sensing System (MDSS) family of systems under Teefy’s guidance and has successfully gone through the required Army acquisition shaping panel and was approved for program initiation in February 2023. Through the HADES program, the Army plans to build a fleet of aerial ISR systems with signals intelligence, synthetic aperture radar/moving target indicators, and additional built-in capabilities.
“PD SAI is in a unique situation where we are tied directly to two major aviation platform organizations,” Teefy said. “Collaboration between Program Management Offices is difficult normally. Imagine how difficult it is when you share funding lines, authorities, and requirements but have different leadership chains of command.”
In preparation for HADES, Teefy strategically partnered with his counterpart at Project Manager Fixed Wing (PM FW) under PEO Aviation to demonstrate and operationally deploy jet-based ISR sensing on PM FW contractor-owned, contractor-operated (COCO) Airborne Reconnaissance and Targeting Multi-Mission System (ARTEMIS) and Aerial Reconnaissance and Electronic Warfare System (ARES) systems. By collaborating with PM FW, Teefy and PD SAI were able to evaluate the ISR sensors on the demonstrator platforms to help inform HADES program requirements.
Following HADES, Teefy has been managing PD SAI to develop the High-Altitude Platform-Deep Sensing (HAP/DS) as the next MDSS program of record. HAP/DS will comprise the high-altitude layer of the
MDSS family of systems and will be an MDO-capable low-signature, high-altitude platform(s) (i.e., stratospheric balloons/solar fixed wing aircraft) operating in the stratosphere that will enable penetration into highly defended threat operational areas. The Army is currently in the campaign of learning stage for the program.
In preparation of HADES, under Teefy’s leadership, PD SAI has been working to divest and demilitarize the Army’s existing fleet of turboprop aircraft (i.e., the Enhanced Medium Altitude Reconnaissance and Surveillance System (EMARSS), Guardrail Common Sensor (GRCS), Airborne Reconnaissance Low-Enhanced (ARL-E), and Airborne Reconnaissance Low-Multifunction (ARL-M)), which will all be replaced once HADES is fully fielded. The divestiture for all three systems began in Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) and is scheduled to be completed by the end of FY25 in accordance with the Army Requirements Oversight Council directive.
To date, Teefy oversaw the strategic divestment of one ARL-M, eight EMARSS-Geospatial Intelligence and five GRCS aircraft in collaboration with U.S. Communications and Electronics Command (CECOM), PEO Aviation, PM FW, and U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM). Considering prudent taxpayer spending and joint acquisitions, four aircraft have been transferred to the Navy, 18 were sold through General Services Administration providing about $12 million to support the COCO systems and allocated equipment to other aerial ISR efforts in need of spares.
Traditionally, the Army has viewed each aerial ISR aircraft as a unique platform and developed custom sensor payloads for each specific aviation system. However, with recent advancements in sensor technology, opportunities realized through a modular open system approach (MOSA) architecture, and a drive for interoperability, this acquisition model is no longer the most effective and efficient. Sensors for the Army of 2030 must perform better, be less expensive to integrate, and operate on multiple aviation platforms.
To address this change, over the past two years, Teefy has been leading the charge to shift the PD SAI portfolio to a sensor-centric focused portfolio. This steers away from the traditional custom developed sensors per platform to sensors that are interoperable across multiple platforms. By making a sensor interoperable across multiple platforms, one payload can be used on different types of aviation platforms.
“By becoming a sensor-centric organization, PD SAI will be able to provide full life-cycle sensing capabilities and support,” Teefy said. “This will include ensuring sensing technology is pacing emerging threats thereby ensuring sensing technology aligns to operational goals, mission requirements, and the selected platform constraints.”
During the Change of Responsibility, Teefy was also presented with the Superior Civilian Service Medal for his exceptional performance of duty while serving as the PD SAI. Teefy will next serve as the Project Manager for Tactical Radios under the Program Executive Office for Command, Control and Communications-Tactical (PEO C3T) where he previously served as Product Director for Cryptographic Systems.
Brig. Gen. Ed Barker, Program Executive Officer, Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors, presents the Superior Civilian Service Medal to Dennis Teefy for his exceptional performance of duty while serving as the Project Director for Sensors Aerial Intelligence. [/caption]
Isaac assumed responsibilities as the Deputy PD SAI in March 2024. As Deputy, she provided direction and leadership for PD SAI personnel to meet overall execution of the delivery of the Army’s premier aerial ISR sensors. She is the first female to assume the position of Project Director for PD SAI.
“I am extremely excited to have Julie remain in the PEO IEW&S family,” Barker said. “I am looking forward to seeing the SAI team continue to flourish with Julie leading the team in providing aerial ISR sensors that support current operations throughout the world while ensuring flexibility to pace future threats.”
Before serving as PD SAI Deputy, Isaac was the Deputy Project Manager for Position, Navigation and Timing, which is also under PEO IEW&S, where she led that modernization priority through two successful Milestone C decisions as well as two Initial Operational Test and Evaluations for the Mounted Assured PNT System (MAPS) and Dismount Assured PNT System (DAPS) programs. She also has prior experience in the PD SAI family when she was the PD SAI Business Management Division Chief where she led a team providing guidance and oversight of the fiscal laws and regulations for the programs to execute funding and contracts through the yearly Program Plans Budget and Execution cycle. She also spent a year of her time at PD SAI as the Acting Deputy PD SAI during which she ensured seamless continuity of internal operations and maintained stakeholder relationships and engagements.
In 2021, Isaac was awarded the U.S. Command, Control, Communication, Computers, Cyber, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (C5ISR) Top 10 Outstanding Personnel of the Year award for her time as Acting Deputy PD SAI.
“I am honored to serve as your Project Director and look forward to the privilege of leading this team into the future,” Isaac said.