Our People

Tyler is from Phoenix, AZ, and received his Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering from BYU and is looking forward to specializing in Aerospace at Purdue. He's always had a love for fighter jets (pretty much any military aircraft) and his dream is to work on top secret projects in that area. He enjoys playing pretty much all sports; especially soccer, volleyball, tennis, and pickleball. He also loves to play the piano.

Research Interests: High Performance Aircraft, Design, and Simulation

Charles graduated from the University of Maryland in 2016 with his Bachelors in aerospace engineering. He began his career with NAVAIR’s Propulsion and Power division as a turbofan/turbojet basic design engineer where he supported the AV-8B Harrier’s mighty F402 engine and managed a portfolio of Science and Technology (S&T) projects. In 2021, Charles left NAVAIR to study for his Master’s fulltime at Purdue University. In December 2023, Charles earned his Masters of Business Administration, and in July 2024, he earned his Masters of Science in Aeronautics and Astronautics. His thesis focused on optimizing the topology of an emergency response drone network. Charles is now a Systems Engineering and Technical Assistance (SETA) contractor at the Office of Naval Research (ONR) Code 35 where he works on enhancing continuous wave high energy laser weapon effectiveness and counter measures.

Seejay graduated with an undergraduate degree in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering at Purdue in May of 2022. During his undergrad he was lucky enough to get introduced to research and Dr. D's lab through Nick Gunady. His research interests lie in Urban Air Mobility, specifically in operations and energy infrastructure. In June, he was apart of the team that won the FAA Smart Connected Aviation Student Competition with their Demand Response UAM infrastructure project. He is super excited to continue this work and do more research with the lab!

Research Interests: Urban Air Mobility, Advanced Air Mobility, Energy Infrastructure, MBSE, Reinforcement Learning

Liam Ward is originally from just outside of Philadelphia, PA. He graduated in May 2022 from Boston University with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and a concentration in Aerospace Engineering. At BU he served on the structures team of the student-led Rocket Propulsion Group (BURPG), helping to design and build the group’s next liquid-bipropellant rocket. As a Lutchen Distinguished Summer Research Fellow, he developed physics-informed deep learning methods to predict the behavior of complex dynamic systems. He has internship experience developing spaceflight hardware at ABL Space Systems, for the RS1 orbital launch vehicle, at Inversion Space, for a reusable reentry vehicle, and at Hedron Space, for a next-gen optical communications payload. Outside of STEM, Liam enjoys playing and listening to music, learning about history, and exploring new places.

Research Interests: Space Systems Engineering, Hypersonics Materials & Manufacturing, Thermal Protection Materials, Launch & Reentry Vehicles

Originally from Ft. Lauderdale Florida, he completed his undergraduate studies here at Purdue. He currently specializes in Aerospace Systems.

Research Interests: Systems, Spacecraft, Aircraft