BIOGRAPHY
W. Michael Hawes, D.Sc.
Vice President & Orion Program Manager
Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company
W. Michael Hawes, D.Sc., is the Vice President and Orion Program Manager for Lockheed Martin Space
Systems Company. Dr. Hawes joined Lockheed Martin in July 2011 after concluding a 33-year career with the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and was selected to head up Lockheed Martin’s Orion
Program Office in 2014.
Prior to joining the Orion Program, he served as the Director for Human Space Flight Programs with Lockheed
Martin’s Washington Operations organization. In this role he was responsible for representing the Human Space
Flight/ Space Systems Company organization with the Administration and Congress.
Dr. Hawes has a diverse background of program management, aerospace engineering, mission operations, and
leadership experience that is critical to leading one of the company’s most notable programs.
During his career with NASA, Dr. Hawes served as the Associate Administrator for Independent Program and
Cost Evaluation (IPCE) where he was responsible for providing objective studies and analyses in support of
policy, program, and budget decisions by the NASA Administrator. He also served as the Deputy Associate
Administrator for Program Integration in the Office of Space Operations at NASA Headquarters in Washington,
DC, and supported the Space Shuttle Program focusing on Return to Flight actions as well as the transition and
disposition of Space Shuttle assets following the program’s conclusion.
In addition, Dr. Hawes served as the Deputy Associate Administrator, International Space Station (ISS) and
Program Director for the ISS at NASA Headquarters where he directed the space station budget; established and
implemented station policy and coordinated external communications; and liaison activities with the
Administration, Congress, industry and the station's international partners. During his tenure with the ISS
Program, 13 Space Shuttle assembly missions were completed, the critical Russian Service Module launched, and
the first five ISS Expedition crews completed their increments. All assembly missions were completed
successfully as major components were integrated in space without ever seeing their counterparts on the ground.
Prior to joining the Space Station Program Office in Reston, Dr. Hawes served in several technical and
managerial positions at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX. His responsibilities included the
integration of experiments and commercial satellites into the Space Shuttle. Hawes served as the Payload Officer
in the Shuttle Mission Control Center for several missions from STS-5 through STS-61C. In addition, he served
on the Mission Control team for the Skylab Reentry team in 1979.
Dr. Hawes has also served as an adjunct faculty member of the George Washington University College of
Engineering. His focus areas include engineering management and systems engineering.
Dr. Hawes was born in Greenville, PA where he attended Greenville Senior High School. He received a
Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Notre Dame in 1978 and Masters
and Doctor of Science of Engineering Management degrees from the George Washington University in 1996 and
2006 respectively. He is also a graduate in Program Management from the Defense Systems Management
College in Fort Belvoir, Va.
Among the many career awards Dr. Hawes has received are NASA’s Distinguished Service and Outstanding
Leadership Medals. He has been recognized with three Senior Executive Service Rank Awards and was the
NASA recipient of the Prince of Asturias Award from His Royal Highness, the Prince of Spain. Dr. Hawes was
inducted as a member of the International Academy of Astronautics in September 2013 and he is an Associate
Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).
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June 2014