Odyssey Group Highlights

Aviation Group

Odyssey became an integral member of the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC) Agile Combat Support Directorate at our Wright-Patterson offices in March 2024. Since that time, every area within the Simulators and Human Systems Divisions has felt the “Odyssey Impact,” through direct management of programs and customer intimacy. Our team is comprised of several skillsets to include Engineers, Program Manager, Logistics Manager, Equipment Specialist, and Material and Textiles Technicians.

Below are some examples of the critical work being accomplished:

Aero-Medical Lab
Aero-Medical EN Technician Ela Araujo (right) is assigned to the Aero-medical lab. She works with Government Engineers to research and report the effects and operational impacts of vibrations, climate, crash testing as well as Electromagnetic interference (EMI) on both aircraft and equipment. Along with this, Ela is Odyssey’s Area Lead and does immediate “care-n-feeding” of Odyssey ACS contract employees.

F-16 Simulators
F-16 simulators is being managed by Stephanie Kanistros. Stephanie has brought several innovative solutions to the F-16 Simulators Training Program operations to include developing a new tracking mechanism for status of all simulators worldwide that includes funding, repair schedules, action items, upgrades and technical refreshes. She is also regularly called upon to represent her Government Program Manager at Command-level briefings and meetings.

Mobility Air Force Distributed Mission Operations (MAF DMO)
Brad Bergsten is the Program Manager for MAF DMO. He oversees the $79M Huntington Ingalls (HII) task order on the US Air Force’s Training Systems Acquisition III contract vehicle. He is also responsible for researching and recommending solutions for Product Support modifications for the contract. Recently he was tasked to ensure compliance with new Financial Improvement and Audit Readiness (FIAR) and Government Furnished Property (GFP) accountability.

Aircrew Performance
Donald McLemore is a Mechanical Engineer supporting the Human Systems Division. His primary tasking is the Next Generation Fixed Wing Helmet (NGFWH) program which aims to successfully design a replacement for the legacy helmet currently used by United States Air Force (USAF) pilots in the field. Donald is designing the performance specification for the new helmet.

Mechanical Engineer / Technicians—Materials and Textiles Lab
Jim Gorjup is the Odyssey Engineer assigned to the Materials and Textiles Lab. He, along with his team of Technicians—James Lynn, Tim Harris, and Randy Fontana research and report on various textile and first article samples and tests each month. They are responsible for quality testing the specification conformance of all textiles to be used in Air Force parachutes and parachute-related equipment by verifying the manufacturing quality of First Article samples of all Air Force Life Support-related equipment.

Systems Engineer—Aircrew Sustainment
Demetrius Samuel (right) is our Engineer assigned to the Isolated Personnel Survival Aircrew Flight Equipment (IPSAFE) survival kit team. He is accomplishing the engineering analysis associated with allowing items from the survival kit to be ordered individually. Demetrius also works closely with the Chief Engineer of Egress & Safety to assure all metrics are designed and uploaded into the Project Management Resource Tools (PMRT) database.

Clearly, our Wright-Patt based Agile Combat Support team members are making a huge difference in helping the customer achieve their mission to Acquire and Support War Enabling Capabilities—Professionally and Affordably!

C5ISR Group

Currently tracking to over 1100 personnel, the flagship program of the C5ISR portfolio is the PEO Digital contract. Led by our crack management team ( Bob Sanguinet, John Dionne, Cindy Callahan, Judy Ryan, Stu Kanefsky, Dave McMillan, Karl Reichl, Stephanie Lilly, and Rob Goudreau), and supported by our PCAs Kim Keefe and Jade Mawhinney, our PM for Manpower & Vacancies, our HRBA Suraiea Hussain, our Project Coordinator Leixa Acevedo, and a fantastic TA and corporate support team, this massive undertaking is operating extremely well. In an “I can’t believe it’s been a year moment,” they finished the first year of the contract on 17 July. Though there have been too many kudos and accolades to list here, the entire 1100 person team provided outstanding service to all of PEO Digital’s mission areas. Topping the year off, our government customer awarded us an Exceptional CPAR.

Further afield in our C5ISR family, we continue to thrive in Germany with our operations at Ramstein AFB. Rick Mercer and his team provide critical support to the Air Warrior Center and A8. Their efforts over the last few years has led to new contracts with EUCOM and NATO. We’re all looking forward to seeing our OCONUS footprint grow in the future. Aaron Hairston’s teams supporting Air Combat Command, Air Mobility Command, the Air Force Research Labs, and the Navy Information Warfare Center are also thriving and growing. Because the contracts are geographically dispersed between Virginia, Ohio, Illinois, and Washington, D.C., Aaron is often on the road with multi-stop trips to meet with our employees, customers, and partner companies.

The most astute of readers may notice that I haven’t mentioned our FIRES team, led by Phil Freeman. Because of their success in expanding their contracts with the Special Ops community and the nature of the systems they deliver, Phil and team have moved over to the Systems Group. C5ISR will miss Phil’s passion and indefatigable drive for success.

Managing our second largest group of contracts, Bob Weldon’s Special Access Program’s team has done a remarkable job. As they await the award of their follow-on contract—delayed for months as the Air Force navigates the second of two protests—Bob’s team has patiently gone about their usual business of providing superb support every day locked behind their secure doors. When the protests are cleared, we expect the team’s work to continue under a larger support contract to PEO C3I&N.

Finally, because of the dramatic growth of C3ISR, we have expanded our senior leadership team by promoting Mike Petroskey as the Director of C3I&N, which will be comprised of his current classified contract, our incumbent Special Access Programs (continued to be led by Bob Weldon), and an additional influx of new work under the follow-on contract. Mike has proven his management mettle over many years and the promotion is well deserved. We also recently hired James “Taco” Townsend to be our new NC3 Director. Taco recently retired from the Air Force as a Lt Col and served as the Deputy Division Chief for Force Protection at Hanscom AFB. He brings a wealth of Air Force acquisition experience, customer knowledge, mission focus, and leadership experience. Both Mike and Taco will be instrumental in our success as we continue to grow.

Medical Group

Odyssey WRAIR Biological Research and Development (BRD) Highlights

Research within the WRAIR Biological Research and Development (BRD) Section of the Center for Infectious Disease Research (CIDR) continues its focus on producing a malaria vaccine for clinical study using its proprietary vaccine platform while developing vaccines on the platform for other infectious diseases. This last quarter resulted in the finalization of the clinical product characterization protocol, completion of the structural determination experiments and acquisition of immunogenicity data from the rodent studies in order to validate potency. With this work, the group is one step closer to manufacturing of the vaccine in the WRAIR cGMP Pilot Bioproduction Facility (PBF).

Odyssey WRAIR CMPN Highlights

This quarter, the WRAIR Brain Trauma and Neuroprotection (BTN) branch within the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience (CMPN) continued its identification, development and characterization of diverse Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) interventions. Building on earlier work described in last quarter’s newsletter, the Mitochondria group has begun assessing the bioenergetics of mitochondria found in the blood using a custom in-house developed swine model. This work is critical for understanding the negative effects TBI has on the mitochondria’s metabolism function and what chemical markers in the brain are most associated with this damage. Additional work using the swine model involves the Q-collar device. The device, already approved by the FDA for use by athletes, is designed to minimize damage to the brain from repeated concussive impacts by compressing internal jugular veins to increase blood volume in the cranial space. This increased blood volume prevents the brain from moving during an impact.

Another group is testing a fieldable Direct Osmotherapy Device (OTD) that has shown promise in reducing inflammation at the point of injury. A poster for this work was recently accepted for presentation at the Military Health Sciences Research Symposium (MHSRS), the premier conference for military research.

A recently completed study on the use of anti-CD47 antibodies to enhance the clearance of hematomas post penetrating TBI and its association with mitigation of acute neuropathology and improved cognitive function in rats was published in the Journal of Neurotrauma.

WRAIR Department of Diarrheal Disease Research (DDR) Highlights

In addition to ongoing projects to produce high-titer anti-Shigella antibodies in cows, development of an “Intestine on a Chip” technology and Antimicrobial Peptides (AMPs) as a potential therapeutic against Shigella infection, the group is supporting a NIH-sponsored Phase II clinical trial of a live attenuated Shigella vaccine performed at University of Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Emory University by testing fecal samples for the presence of Shigella DNA using quantitative PCR (qPCR). The data will be correlated with immunogenicity data generated at U. Cincinnati. In a separate project, the group is collaborating with the University of Maryland on the use Bacterial Enzymatic Combinatorial Chemistry (BECC) to reduce the toxicity of live-attenuated Shigella vaccines. Initial work in a human cell line is complete and the group is preparing to continue the study in a small animal (guinea pig) model. Other work includes the characterization of cGMP cell bank material to support the production of a Shigella vaccine for human trial and a mouse study to demonstrate protection against Shigella infection by a bovine colostrum product derived from infected cows.

Odyssey WRAIR WID Highlights

The WRAIR Wound Infection Department (WID) continues to identify, evaluate and transition therapeutics and medical devices against multi-drug resistant (MDR) bacterial and fungal wound infections. This work is a high priority for the DoD as the risk of MDR is greatly increased in the context of delayed medical care expected during a near-peer conflict.

Recently, the Structural Biology group has submitted a patent for its small molecule, DsbA, that has shown potency against Klebsiella pneumoniae—a multidrug resistant bacteria of great concern to the military. The group also presented a poster on the development of a novel Acetobacter baumannii biofilm inhibitor at the Military Health Sciences Research Symposium (MHSRS). The Human Monoclonal Antibody Platform (HMAP) group is currently collaborating with the WRAIR Military HIV Research Program (MHRP), the WRAIR Biological Research and Development (BRD) branch and the Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Sciences (AFRIMS) in Thailand under a Foundation grant to develop monoclonal antibodies against A. baumannii. Other projects include collaborations with the United States Army Institute of Surgical research on A. baumannii in a rat polytrauma model and the Navy Wound Infection Department on a mouse sepsis model with A. baumannii.

The Bacteriophage group (BT) continues to develop novel bacteriophage cocktails specific for MDR pathogens. Ongoing projects include the identification and characterization of over 1000 bacteriophages, with activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and K. pneumoniae, from international locations including Kenya, Thailand and the Republic of Georgia. The group is also supporting the Phase IIb clinical trial of their anti-mucoid phages for the treatment of cystic fibrosis patients infected with P. aeruginosa. Other projects include the development of a novel mouse Blast and Burn model to test bacteriophage cocktail efficacy in a near real-world environment and studies to optimize the intranasal delivery of bacteriophage against Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

In the Trauma Infection Group (TIR), Odyssey employees are currently working on a project to use Bone Marrow Mobilizers to prevent infection post-blast and use those in conjunction with FDA-approved Bone Marrow stimulants. Other projects include the use of novel antibacterial nanoparticles to treat multidrug resistant infections in a small animal model and the use of injectable gels that release antibacterial compounds slowly at the site of infection. This research is critical to the management of infections in austere environments where transport to medical facilities is delayed.

Program Integration Department

The Program Integration Group has been busy this quarter supporting multiple corporate initiatives that will enhance processes and procedures within the organization. Noteworthy accomplishments include the initiation of a new corporate alignment directive called Integrated Service Delivery Teams which was rolled out at the third quarter managers meeting and the restructuring of the onboarding experience for new employees.

The Integrated Service Delivery Team initiative will further integrate our operational and functional groups by creating teams that are made up of operational and functional representatives who are aligned with ensuring contract execution is successful. These teams will meet on a regular basis to ensure accomplishment of contract objectives, create effective communication pathways between the various contributors to the contract’s success, and resolve issues or concerns related to contract execution. The goal of this directive is to maximize our effectiveness in managing contract execution.

Starting early this year, the Program Integration Group also began the initiation of a new process for incoming Odyssey employees. The main objective of this initiative was to identify, establish and implement a new process for engaging with Odyssey employees from hire through Day One of work. This project involved many hours of discussion with the multiple groups that engage with employees as they accept a job with Odyssey to include but not limited to groups like Talent Acquisition, Human Resources, Operations, Payroll, Accounting, Security, and Contracting researching how each group engages with the employee as they come onboard in the organization. After outlining the current process and then discussing improvement opportunities, the project team worked with our systems subject matter experts to arrive at a new solution for this process. The project is currently in the implementation phase and is expected to be completed by first quarter 2025. If you happen to have a referral for an open position, they could possibly be one of the first to go through this new process!

Space and Missile Defense Group

S&MD continues to receive recurring kudos from Government Customers. Below are just a few recent examples of employees going above and beyond and truly showcasing their Commitment, Ambition, Respect for the Mission.

Congratulations to Lou Perret for his recent Government recognition for exceptional support to Space System Command (SSC)! “Mr. Perret has exceeded performance expectations and proven himself an invaluable asset to the SPO.”

MW/MT Team of Art Wood, Stephen Greenen, Mikki Dalbec, and Lela Clark provided the NCMC MW/MT PEO, Colonel McLain, a very successful and detailed briefing on MW/MT efforts.

Odyssey’s Space & Missile Defense Group would like to thank Trevor Starkey for his continued commitment and support to SZQ. Here is just a small excerpt from his glowing Customer and Leadership kudos: “This young man Exceeds all expectation every day… he enthusiastically accepts any challenge given and consistently produces the highest results.”

Patrick Wolfe spent multiple months working closely with SZQN to develop a detailed cost estimate to realistically implement Model-Based Systems Engineering. He worked with the subject matter experts from the program office and participated in extra meetings with both our sustainment provider and external contractors. He went above and beyond in this effort and initiating biweekly meetings. He delivered this cost estimate on time for our March 1st briefing with leadership and participated in this meeting to speak on behalf of the estimate. The work he put into it has been recognized as outstanding.

Congratulations to Jerry Delva for “[surpassing]…technical government requirements through his exceptional leadership and team-building abilities. His forward-thinking approach to addressing program challenges, combined with a dedication to team cohesion and operational stability, has marked him as a standout leader.”

Kudos to Grant Richardson for his recent recognition from the SSC/SZQ Chief Engineer as a valuable member of the team for his detailed work in analyzing over 100 circuits and identifying many errors in the information reported previously to the Commander’s Council on the circuits at risk.

Congratulations to John Betz and Mike Haefner! John and Mike were 2 of 7 individuals highlighted by the SZQ Senior Material Leader in an organization of over 400 personnel.

Mr. John Betz recently led training for 50+ people at the Ground Base Radar site at Clear, Alaska. John’s expert system knowledge and his ability to train and demonstrate HEMP best practices to new site personnel has been a huge mission assurance enhancement. By keeping site personnel trained on proper HEMP protective measures, the UEWR/PARCs sites will maintain a higher level of threat protection in the MW/MT battlespace and provide strategic leaders decision space to address Great Power Competition challenges.

Mr. Mike Haefner expertly led the TREX Procurement and Deployment team in getting an optimal RFP released in record time! Mike was the first to implement the new acquisition approval process from end to end and by doing so, identified and addressed process gaps as well as benchmarked cross-functional coordination activities that epitomize acquisition excellence. Specifically, Mike successfully shaved a month off RFP release by leaning forward with SOW & CDRL development, and DD254 coordination. Having these artifacts vetted and available earlier than usual afforded senior leaders the ability to confidently make acquisition decisions about the maintenance and sustainment of UEWR assets.

UEWR Transition Wins Mission System Team of the Quarter!

Congratulations to the UEWR Transition / Source Selection Team—Michael McCleish, Karen Schmidtman, Robert Walley, Ken Chambers, Michael D’Aquila, Tony Kaliher, Robert Smith, Jeff Hein, Matt Junglas, Bear Kelley, and Linda Palmer!

SMD Has Done It Again–Excellent CPARS!

• AEF—Led by Senior PM Michael “Nute” Knudsen
• MWMD—Led by Senior PM Michael “Nute” Knudsen and Task Lead Mike Shanahan
• PNT GPS—Led by Senior PM Michael “Nute” Knudsen and Task Lead Jake Austin
• S3-2—Led by Senior PM Michael “Nute” Knudsen and Manager Scott Gregory along with TLs Anjoleen Himes, Greg Lasecki, Justin Fletcher, JB Burch, Chris Randell, Luke Gargasz, Scott Rumph, and Lisa Hanselman
• SZQ—Led by Director Howard Gentry, along With TLs Duane Lankford, Roger McCrory, David Dunklee, Ken Wanless, Randy Threer, Hans Hoerauf, Clarence Lukes, Jerry Delva, Kim Rohrer, Mark Jones, George White, and Ken Henderson

Congratulations to everyone!

System Solutions Group

The Systems Solutions Group recently began supporting the DoD Special Operations Forces (SOF) community, particularly Unites States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) and USAF Air Combat Command (ACC). Both organizations use variations of an Odyssey developed certification and training system to ensure the qualifications and safety of all their SOF personnel.

In mid-July the team participated in an urgent USSOCOM led cyber working group with a dual-goal of obtaining a near term Authorization to Operate (ATO) and relaunching the legacy system as SOF-FIRES. Due to the team’s extraordinary efforts a conditional ATO was granted in record time, less than a week afterward. This was followed up by launching the cloud-based system in AWS GovCloud on August 16, just three weeks later. Since then, the customer has had the site under constant use and have repeatedly offered their glowing endorsement.

Never a group to rest, the team is also hard at work improving the ACC variation of the same, TACTICS, and expecting to continue this work in a follow-on contract soon.

Additionally, a new version of SOF-FIRES is being developed to meet all Department of Defense (DoD) Risk Management Framework (RMF) cybersecurity requirements. This version will also aim to enhance the customer’s user experience and will continue to position Odyssey well for continued support of this dynamic customer.

Technical Center

It’s been a busy and exciting season at the Technical Center. We have officially welcomed seven Solution Architects and 23 Technical Fellows to our team. These experts, representing our core pillars in life sciences, cyber security, data science, logistics management, acquisition management, test and evaluation, systems and general engineering, and specialty engineering, bring invaluable expertise and fresh perspectives. Their contributions are set to strengthen our Technical Center’s capabilities, drive innovation and thought leadership, and enhance our comprehensive cross-domain capabilities. Visit the Technical Center web page for more information about our team!

2024 Military Health System Research Symposium (MHSRS)
Technical Center Solution Architects, Scott Schelp and Dr. Robert McLinden, attended the 2024 MHSRS symposium, representing Odyssey’s thought leadership in Data Science and Life Sciences. Also in attendance were Tonya Torgeson, Odyssey’s Executive Director of Growth, and Stefania Dobre, Odyssey’s Executive Director of Operations, Medical Group. The MHSRS is the Department of Defense’s premier scientific meeting, focused on addressing the unique medical needs of military personnel through research and collaboration.

Air Force Life Cycle Management Center’s (AFLCMC) Life Cycle Industry Days (LCID)
Technical Center Solution Architect, Therese Honda, attended the 9th LCID in Dayton, Ohio. She represented Odyssey by engaging in presentations, panels, and keynote presentations, showcasing our thought leadership. The event focused on future requirements for LCMC and covered topics across the entire acquisition life cycle and management within AFLCMC portfolios.

Tech Spotlight
Thank you to Jaime Socotch and Brian Cantrell for your invaluable support of our PM STRIKE proposal. We appreciate your diligent efforts in contributing to a successful submission.

We are excited to introduce our new Acquisition Management Technical Fellow, Lela Clark. Lela, who currently supports our EPASS SZQ effort, brings extensive knowledge and experience in acquisition management. She will be a valuable addition to our team and a key asset in driving our initiatives forward.