As Chief Executive Officer, Karl leads all aspects of Estes Energetics. He has over ten years of professional experience as a leader and team builder in the aerospace and other industries. Prior to starting Estes Energetics, Karl worked at Bell leading the Army Future Vertical Lift strategy team and previously managed a composites manufacturing facility producing V-22, H-1, and other composite rotorcraft components. Prior to Bell, he worked at Aurora Flight Sciences, where he had responsibilities for business development, program management, and engineering. Karl was the first Aurora Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in aerospace and systems engineering, as well as an MBA, from MIT.

As Estes Energetics’ chief engineer, Mike has responsibility for propellant formulation, production development, testing, and research. He also serves as the lead engineer for the Goex black powder plant. Mike joined Estes from NAWCWD – China Lake where he worked in several technical areas involving propulsion and energetics. Mike holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering and minor in Chemistry from the University of Minnesota where he also led the Propulsion Team for the University of Minnesota Rocket Team.

As Estes Energetics’ lead manufacturing and test engineer, Tim has responsibility for production development, testing, and research. He runs and keeps our test stand updated. Tim joined Estes Energetics from Northrop Grumman where he worked in development, manufacturing, and qualification testing. Tim holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from West Virginia University where he also founded the WVU Rocket Team.

David is Estes Energetics’ lead formulator and rocket motor design engineer. David joined Estes Energetics from Northrop Grumman where he was the materials and process propellant lead for Sentinel, SLS, and BOLE motors. Previously, he worked at NAWCWD China Lake where he worked on the team that developed Krasol reduced smoke propellant and at Aerojet, where he formulated over 3.6 million pounds of propellant for the Atlas V AJ60 motor in addition to working on many other solid rocket programs. David holds a bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from Purdue University.