Jay G. Santee

Jay G. Santee, Community Member, is a general manager at The Aerospace Corporation where he currently serves as the strategic advisor to the Commander, US Space Command. Prior to joining Aerospace, Santee was outcome leader for Resilient Affordable Space at MITRE, where he was responsible for directing and shaping MITRE’s contributions to the national security space enterprise’s fielding of a resilient, affordable space force.

Santee served 33 years in the United States Air Force, retiring as a major general in 2014. Santee’s last assignment was as deputy director of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. In this capacity, he played a key leadership role in the removal and destruction of declared Syrian chemical weapons materials aboard the MV Cape Ray. Santee’s other assignments in the Air Force included: acting deputy assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy, vice commander of the 14th Air Force, Director of the Space Operations Center (now the Combined Space Operations Center), commander of the 21st Space Wing, and operations division chief at U.S. Space Command.

Santee earned a bachelor’s degree in geography from the U.S. Air Force Academy, an MBA from Golden Gate University, and a master’s degree in national security strategy from the National War College. Santee also completed the Program for Senior Executives in National and International Security at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.

Santee was awarded the 2014 Ellis Island Medal of Honor and was invested as a Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honor), France’s highest honor, in 2012.

Santee is an associate fellow with the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.