General Inquiries

National Institute for Aviation Research
Wichita State University
1845 Fairmount St.
Wichita, KS 67260-0093
Ph: (316) 978-6427
Ph Toll-Free: 1 (800) NIAR WSU
F: (316) 978-3175

Executive Staff

John S. Tomblin, Ph.D.
Executive Director
Sam Bloomfield Distinguished Professor of Aerospace Engineering
Director, Composites & Advanced Materials Laboratory
Director, Structures Laboratory

Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, West Virginia University
M.S., Mechanical Engineering, West Virginia University
B.S., Aerospace Engineering, West Virginia University

Specializing in: Material Qualification, Advanced Material Insertion, Composites and Advanced Materials Research.

(316) 978-5234
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Tom Aldag
Director of Research & Development

B.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University
Mini-MBA – Wichita State University Center for Management Development

Specializing in: New materials and fabrication methods, Linking research and development to government and industry needs

(316) 978-5326
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Jerry W. Antes
Director, Operations and Budget

B.S., Accounting, Troy State University

Specializing in: Program Management, Finance, Business, Operating Budgets, Product and Project Cost Accounting and Product Bid Proposal Preparation and Pricing.

(316) 978-5888
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Tracee Friess
Manager, Marketing & Communication
Coordinator of Special Programs

B.A., Communication, Wichita State University

Specializing in: Annual Report, Newsletter and other Print Publication Development; Public Relations; Website Development; Trade Show and Community Event Coordination, Tours

(316) 978-5597
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Brandon Hunt
Director, Advanced Coatings Lab

B.S., Chemistry, Missouri University of Science and Technology

Specializing in:Research and development of high performance coatings for aerospace, automotive, and general industrial applications

(316) 677-1334
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Tim Hickey
Director, Full-Scale Structural Test Laboratory
Director, Environmental Test Laboratory

B.S., Technology, Southwestern College

Specializing in: Full-scale and Component DDT and Static Testing, Experimental Structural Modifications.

(316) 978-8204
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Melinda Laubach-Hock, Ph.D.
Director, Aging Aircraft Laboratory

B.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University
M.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University
Ph.D., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University

Specializing in: Solid Mechanics, Damage Tolerance and Aircraft Structures, Aging Aircraft Investigations

(316) 978-8205
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Shawn Ehrstein
Director, CAD/CAM Lab, Virtual Reality Center

M.B.A., Wichita State University
M.S., Electrical Engineering, Wichita State University
B.S., Electrical Engineering, Wichita State University

Specializing in: PLM Curriculum Design and Research.

(316) 978-5839
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Walter Lee
Director of Quality & Performance
Manager, Calibration & Quality Laboratory

B.G.S., Mathematics, Wichita State University

Experience: 14 years Hydril Research Lab, 16 years MTS Field Service

Training: Electronics – USN, Avionics – USAF

Specializing in: Electronics, Avionics, Calibration, and Quality

Don Hansen
Manager, Metrology Lab

B.S., Organizational Resource Management, Southwestern College
A.A.S., Electronics Technology, Pikes Peak Community College
Precision Measurement Equipment Laboratory (PMEL) Training, USAF
Certified Quality Technician, American Society for Quality (ASQ)

Specializing in: Calibration of test & measurement equipment, traceable to NIST

(316) 978-8240
Email

Waruna Seneviratne, Ph.D.
Research Scientist & Technical Director, Composites & Advanced Materials Laboratory

Ph.D., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University
M.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University
B.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University

Specializing in: Structural and solid mechanics with emphasis on experimental work on durability and damage tolerance testing and analysis protocols for full-scale composite airframe structures.

(316) 978-5221
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Lamia Salah
Senior Research Engineer & Technical Director, Composites & Advanced Materials Laboratory

M.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University
B.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University

Specializing in: Composites and Fatigue and Fracture Research.
Past and Current Projects: Hydrothermal Effects on Composite Laminates, Bonded Repair of Aircraft Composite Sandwich Structures, Data and Methodologies for Structural Life Evaluation of Small Airplanes, Seat Cushion Component Test Validation, Aging of Composite Aircraft Structures: Decommissioned Boeing 737 Tail.

(316) 978-5775
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Royal Lovingfoss
Associate Director, Composites Laboratory

B.S., Chemistry, University of Washington

Specializing in: Project Management, Composite Material Systems

(316) 978-5317
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Yulia Kostogorova-Beller, Ph.D.
Research Scientist, Composites & Lightning Strike

Specializing in: Lightning strike protection, electromagnetic shielding, nanomaterials

(316) 978-5378
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Gerardo Olivares, Ph.D.
Sr. Research Scientist & Director, Crash Dynamics & Computational Mechanics Laboratory

Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, Wichita State University
M.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University
B.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University

Specializing in: Experimental and Computational Structural Crashworthiness, Occupant Injury Biomechanics, Automotive and Aerospace Safety Systems Development, Mechanical Systems Design and Analysis.

(316) 978-7273
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Robert Huculak
Manager, Crash Dynamics Laboratory

B.S., Mechanical Engineering, Kettering University
M.S., Mechanical Engineering, Wichita State University

Specializing in: Research, testing and certification for transportation seats and restraint systems under dynamic impact conditions.

(316) 978-5331
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Paul Jonas
Director, Environmental Test Lab & Special Programs

B.S., Aeronautical Engineering, Wichita State University

Specializing in: Component and system level environmental and performance testing for commercial and military applications; aircraft component and systems integration; special projects requiring unique or new test or environmental configurations.

(316) 978-5727 office
(316) 665-0503 cell
Email

Yeow Ng
Associate Director, National Center for Advanced Materials Performance (NCAMP)

M.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University
M.S., Mechanical Engineering, Wichita State University
B.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University

Specializing in: Materials & Processes, Qualification and Allowables of Composite and Other Advanced Material Systems.

(316) 978-5212
Email

Beth Clarkson, Ph.D.
Statistician, National Center for Advanced Materials Performance (NCAMP)

M.S., Mathematics, Wichita State University
Ph.D., Mathematics, Wichita State University

Specializing in: Basis value and Equivalency computations for composite materials, Quality Assurance, Statistical Process Control, and Design of Experiments

(316) 978-3952
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John Saunders
Research Engineer & Nondestructive Testing Instructor

A.A.S., Metal Working Technology (NDT emphasis), Community College of the Air Force
B.S., Business Management, Excelsior College of New York

Specializing in: General Nondestructive Testing theory, training, and testing; Certification programs and processes; NDT specifications and procedures; Probability of detection studies; NDT programs quality control and assessments.

(316) 677-1410
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Sheun Wuay Cheng
Manager, Research Machine Shop

Qualification:
M.S., Industrial Engineering, Wichita State University
B.S., Aerospace Engineering, Wichita State University
Certified Six Sigma, American Society for Quality (ASQ)

Specializing in: Continuous Process Improvements, Design and Fabrication of the Composite test articles and Mechanical Hardware used for Research Projects.

(316) 978-3656
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John W. Laffen
Director, Walter H. Beech Wind Tunnel

B.S., Aeronautical Engineering, Wichita State University

Specializing in: Laboratory optimization; Oversight and management of budget, schedules and personnel; Knowledge in aerodynamics, crash dynamics and composites and advanced materials.

(316) 978-5481
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