John S. Thackrah

Last updated April 12, 2019

John S. Thackrah was United States Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Research, Development and Acquisitions) in 2007-2008.

The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States or America, is a country composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles, the United States is the world's third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe's 3.9 million square miles. With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the largest city by population is New York City. Forty-eight states and the capital's federal district are contiguous in North America between Canada and Mexico. The State of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east and across the Bering Strait from Russia to the west. The State of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U.S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, stretching across nine official time zones. The extremely diverse geography, climate, and wildlife of the United States make it one of the world's 17 megadiverse countries.

Biography

Thackrah attended the University of Delaware, where he received a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and aerospace engineering. He received an M.B.A. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

The University of Delaware is a public research university located in Newark, Delaware. University of Delaware is the largest university in Delaware. UD currently offers more than 135 undergraduate degrees. At the graduate level, it offers 67 doctoral, 142 master’s degree programs, 14 dual degrees, 15 interdisciplinary programs, 12 on-line programs, and 28 certificate programs across its seven colleges and more than 82 research centers and institutes. UD is one of the top 100 institutions for federal obligations in science and engineering and interdisciplinary initiatives in energy science and policy, the environment, and in human health. The main campus is in Newark, with satellite campuses in Dover, Wilmington, Lewes, and Georgetown. It is considered a large institution with approximately 18,500 undergraduate and 4,500 graduate students. UD is a privately governed university which receives public funding for being a land-grant, sea-grant, space-grant and urban-grant state-supported research institution.

A bachelor's degree or baccalaureate is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to seven years. In some institutions and educational systems, some bachelor's degrees can only be taken as graduate or postgraduate degrees after a first degree has been completed. In countries with qualifications frameworks, bachelor's degrees are normally one of the major levels in the framework, although some qualifications titled bachelor's degrees may be at other levels and some qualifications with non-bachelor's titles may be classified as bachelor's degrees.

Mechanical engineering is the discipline that applies engineering, physics, engineering mathematics, and materials science principles to design, analyze, manufacture, and maintain mechanical systems. It is one of the oldest and broadest of the engineering disciplines.

In 1979, Thackrah joined United Technologies Corporation's Pratt & Whitney Division, where he worked in project and test engineering. He later worked in program management and model management and commercial flight test activities. He then became president of a Pratt & Whitney joint venture. Thackrah later went on to serve in a series of executive positions, culminating in vice president of commercial products. He then became vice president of UTC's Otis Elevator Company division, later returning to Pratt & Whitney as vice president of aftermarket services, and later serving as vice president and general manager of one of its strategic business units.

Pratt & Whitney Aircraft engine manufacturer

Pratt & Whitney is an American aerospace manufacturer with global service operations. It is a subsidiary of United Technologies (UTC). Pratt & Whitney's aircraft engines are widely used in both civil aviation and military aviation. Its headquarters are in East Hartford, Connecticut. As one of the "big three" aero-engine manufacturers, it competes with General Electric and Rolls-Royce, although it has also formed joint ventures with both of these companies. In addition to aircraft engines, Pratt & Whitney manufactures gas turbines for industrial and power generation, and marine turbines. As of 2014, the company reported having 31,500 employees supporting more than 11,000 customers in 180 countries around the world. In 2013, Pratt & Whitney's revenue totaled $14.5 billion.

Flight testing is a branch of aeronautical engineering that develops and gathers data during flight of an aircraft, or atmospheric testing of launch vehicles and reusable spacecraft, and then analyzes the data to evaluate the aerodynamic flight characteristics of the vehicle in order to validate the design, including safety aspects.

A Joint Venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to access a new market, particularly emerging markets; to gain scale efficiencies by combining assets and operations; to share risk for major investments or projects; or to access skills and capabilities.

On April 18, 2005, Thackrah was sworn in as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Management and Budget of the United States Department of the Navy. In this capacity, he was responsible for all of the department's administrative matters, annual budget preparation, and human resource management, and served as chief of staff for the Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Research, Development and Acquisitions), who was John J. Young Jr. followed by Delores M. Etter.

The United States Department of the Navy (DoN) was established by an Act of Congress on April 30, 1798, to provide a government organizational structure to the United States Navy, the United States Marine Corps and, when directed by the President, the United States Coast Guard, as a service within the Department of the Navy, though each remain independent service branches. The Department of the Navy was an Executive Department and the Secretary of the Navy was a member of the President's cabinet until 1949, when amendments to the National Security Act of 1947 changed the name of the National Military Establishment to the Department of Defense and made it an Executive Department. The Department of the Navy then became, along with the Department of the Army and Department of the Air Force, a Military Department within the Department of Defense: subject to the authority, direction and control of the Secretary of Defense.

The title chief of staff identifies the leader of a complex organization, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporting staff or a primary aide-de-camp to an important individual, such as a president, or a senior military officer, or leader of a large organization.

John J. Young Jr. US Department of Defense official

John Jacob Young Jr. was United States Assistant Secretary of the Navy from 2001 to 2005 and Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics from 2007 to 2009. He is the founder and principal of JY Strategies, LLC.

In 2007, President of the United States George W. Bush nominated Thackrah as Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Research, Development and Acquisitions) and he subsequently held this office from November 16, 2007, until July 27, 2008. In that capacity, he was responsible for $50 billion annually of research, development and acquisition activities, and the management of over 100,000 people.

The President of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces.

George W. Bush 43rd president of the United States

George Walker Bush is an American politician and businessman who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. He had previously served as the 46th governor of Texas from 1995 to 2000.

On December 8, 2008, he became Principal Deputy of the Navy's Strategic Systems Programs.

On April 4, 2017, Thackrah returned to Pratt & Whitney as vice president of Washington operations.

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References

Government offices
Preceded by Delores M. Etter	Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Research, Development and Acquisitions) November 16, 2007 – July 27, 2008	Succeeded by Sean Stackley

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