Astronautics names new president

Avionics producer Astronautics Corporation of America announced that Robert Atac has joined the company as its president. Reporting directly to Astronautics Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Ronald Zelazo, Atac will be responsible for the company’s strategic growth, product and technology development, and overall management. “We are delighted to have Bob on board as the company’s new president. His extensive domestic and international experience in military and commercial avionics and product development make him an ideal leader for Astronautics during our next phase of growth,” said Zelazo.  “Astronautics was founded with an entrepreneurial spirit, with the goal of pushing the boundaries of technology.  We believe Bob will embrace and promote that value while growing Astronautics’ product lines and expanding our market reach.” “I have always admired Astronautics’ innovative spirit as an avionics developer and integrator.  I look forward to working with this team to expand their product portfolio and addressable market,” said Atac.  “The Astronautics team has the creativity, capability, and experience needed to produce reliable, high-performance avionics.” Before joining Astronautics, Atac had a 10-year career with Thales Defense and Security, Inc., the U.S. defence business for the Thales Group. He held numerous roles at Thales, including chief technology officer, vice president/general manager of the Visionix Helmet Mounted Display (HMD) division, and vice president of engineering technology. Prior to Thales, Atac co-founded and built the Visionix HMD division of Gentex, which was sold to Thales.  There he oversaw the development of Scorpion, the first HMD with color symbols, and used the product to break into the military HMD market. During his seven-year career with Gentex, he was also vice president and director of engineering and technology, and director of integrated systems. Before Gentex, he was vice president of military aviation for CMC Electronics.  Here he integrated Flight Visions—his own startup avionics company—into CMC.  Prior to CMC, he was the president and co-founder of Flight Visions, Inc. Atac began his career as a project manager for the advanced computer program of Fermilab. Atac holds a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Engineering, both from the University of Illinois. He also holds a certificate in mid-management from Loyola University, and is currently completing a chief technology officer program at the Wharton School of Business. In addition, Atac holds numerous patents and is a licensed pilot. For Editorial Inquiries Contact: Editor Matt Driskill at [email protected] For Advertising Inquiries Contact: Head of Sales Kay Rolland at [email protected]