Daniel Sokol Email & Phone Number

Burbank, Ca, Us

Falls Church, Va, Us

Configuration IPT lead overseeing configuration design, mass properties, and specialty engineering disciplines on advanced aircraft design contract. Interface with all of the IPTs when program manager is not onsite and act as DOA when PM is out of the office; running staff meetings, interfacing with the customer, coordinating discipline activities. Lead related internal R&D design efforts.

Falls Church, Va, Us

Co-creator of novel semi-buoyant planetary exploration vehicle for Venus, Titan, Mars, and Earth that combines the buoyant attributes of a balloon with the maneuverability of an aircraft providing a leap in the duration of mission lifetime. Developed parametric conceptual sizing tools that included mass properties, buoyancy, aerodynamics, and propulsion/power disciplines. Performed entry and aeroheating analyses validating low ballistic entry approach and need for reduced TPS as part of the design process. Led team of 5+ engineers on the internally funded vehicle design effort to evaluate stowage and subsystem architecture options to support Venus operations, with particular emphasis on thermal and electrical subsystems. Led air vehicle portion of internal system concept review with graybeards; determined concept is sound and encouraged continuing work. Presented poster at 2014 IPPW conference.

Falls Church, Va, Us

Responsible for layout of the Cryogenic Propulsion Module component of Northrop’s HLS Transfer Element. Led a team of 5 engineers integrating subsystems, their support structure, and thermal design features that supported the long duration in space cryogenic storage requirements. Interfaced with other disciplines and teammates to ensure that all members requirements were supported while meeting overall mission goals. Responsible for secondary structures mass property generation and control efforts.

Led multidisciplinary team of 10+ engineers to bring flight system to a PDR level. Responsible for booster outer mold line development, internal layouts to support operability requirements, preliminary subsystem sizing. Technical monitor for $100k+ subcontract and developed $40M+ statement of work for Phase 2 proposal. Provided lofts and CAD models for CFD, structural, and wind tunnel model design and analysis. Approved wind tunnel models, test matrix planning and approach for two wind tunnel tests.

HLV/FAST/TERRIFC (2006-2016): Design lead for AFRL reusable booster design contracts (FAST-$10M, TERRIFC-$2.5M). Responsibilities included sizing, preliminary performance, mass properties, aerodynamic mold line, subsystem identification and sizing, propulsion integration, and vehicle layout. Developed a conceptual level Multi-disciplinary Optimization (MDO) RLV sizing tool that linked CAD, mass properties, engine selection, performance, and aerodynamics and reduced design cycle time from 1 week to 2 days.PFTA/Engine Integration (2009-2011) Principal Investigator on 2 AFRL contracts ($500k total) integrating existing rocket engines and power, fluid, thermal, and actuation subsystems into RLVs. Led a small multi-disciplinary team that showed existing rocket engines and high TRL subsystems could support reusable booster turnaround requirements. Completed on schedule and within budget.

Design Lead on DARPA funded Special Operations transport vehicle. Developed propulsion system and mission analysis tools for pulsejet and ducted fan systems and adapted existing tools for the PAV’s mission profile.

At Lockheed Martin ("the Skunk Works") I worked on multiple programs, developing conceptual designs and identifying technology requirements from mission requirements for a variety of IR&D and CR&D programs. My tasks included vehicle sizing and layout, propulsion system estimates, lofting, subsystem identification, preliminary mass, aerodynamic, and technology identification. I supported technology development projects from concept through testing. I presented results to management and customers, including technology development road maps and future conceptual design work recommendations.Some of the specific programs/tasks are: • Design Lead for a vehicle level study for an air-breathing MHD type engine. Tasks included developing system level analysis model based on simple physics model for the engine. • Technical Lead for a DARPA funded $100k technology study contract for new high-speed inlet systems. • Conceptual designer on the DARPA FALCON hypersonic cruise vehicle, X-43B hypersonic air-breathing flight demonstrator, and Space Maneuver Vehicle conceptual design studies, as well as other classified/proprietary programs.

Cleveland, Oh, Us

Supported engineering prototype and engineering hardware development for the Radiative Ignition and Transition to Flame Spread Investigation (RITSI) Space Shuttle Glovebox experiment that flew on STS-75. Analyzed freefall test results, quantified hardware parameters for the flight hardware, and designed the test apparatus for the backup ignition source. Wrote the qualification procedures to enable the experiment to be carried on the Space Shuttle.

Master'S Degree, Mechanical Engineering-Specializing In Fluid Mecahnics And Heat Transfer

Bachelor Of Science In Engineering, Fluid And Thermal Engineering Science