Retiring ESC commander recalls career highlights

  • Published
  • By Patty Welsh
  • 66th Air Base Group Public Affairs
HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. --  During a career day assignment in the eighth grade, one student wrote a goal for twenty years in the future that turned out to be close to reality.

Col. Mark Spillman, Electronic Systems Center commander, wrote that fateful day that he would be a colonel and test pilot in the U.S. Air Force.

"My father had been an aircraft maintainer in the Air Force and retired from Nellis [AFB]," he said. "We went to the base for the commissary, for medical appointments and also the air shows. I was always interested in flying and also the engineering and technical side of the airplanes."

Unfortunately, because his sitting height is too tall, he couldn't become a test pilot, but he did become that colonel and a flight test engineer. Now, as Spillman prepares for retirement from the Air Force and reflects on a career that spans almost 23 years, glimpses of that boy excited by the service and its opportunities still show.

"I've never had a really bad day at work," he said. "I enjoy what I do."

One of the highlights he mentioned was the chance to attend the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School, where, as a flight test engineer, he was able to gain experience flying on about 40 different fixed and rotary wing aircraft.

Spillman also led the test and development efforts on the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System.

"It's a heads-up display that the pilot can see in his helmet," he said. "And instead of having to turn the aircraft toward the target, the pilot can target weapons simply by turning his head."

Although today this is considered normal, at the time it brought new challenges.

"We had to figure out how to test the accuracy of the display," Spillman said. "We did the test engineering celestially, by using stars."

He also was part of a team that helped develop new flight control design methodologies, mainly for fighter and tailless aircraft, to better handle battle damage and failures in flight.

"We were able to reduce design time by about 80 percent," the colonel said. "And we got to brief the top 40 designers in the world."

In another assignment, he led a team involved with the efforts to convert the B-1 from a nuclear to a conventional platform, which included dealing with redesign to ensure the conventional missiles would release correctly. He also worked on shaping the family of systems for the next generation bomber and long-range strike portfolio.

At ESC, Spillman says his main focus has been on strategic resourcing.

"When I arrived, the Center didn't have much ability or experience to look at the workforce strategically," he said. "We looked at areas such as how many folks do we need in each functional area and at what experience levels."

He also looked at where gaps existed and what could be done about them, and the mix of organic and contractor employees.

"Now we have the tools and templates to provide this analysis," he said. "This is going to become more and more important as the government gets smaller."

Spillman added that he also worked closely with deputy directors around the Center on a variety of issues to improve the Center's ability to get electronic systems out to the warfighter quickly.

With the upcoming transition to the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, he reminds everyone that the mission doesn't change.

"What makes us successful - the quality of our workforce, the relationships we have with organizations such as MITRE, MIT Lincoln Labs, industry and academia - that stays the same, and the work and the mission continues," he said. "When you look at all the different items the Air Force produces, the IT piece is becoming more important to future warfare."

For the future, Spillman and his family will be returning to their home in the Washington, D.C. area, where he is exploring a few job opportunities that will allow him to continue helping the Department of Defense. His wife, Kathy, wants to continue her involvement in public service. His daughter Emma will enter her junior year of high school and his twin sons, Aaron and Collin, are set to enter the seventh grade.

"What I've learned along the way is that time flies as you're having fun and staying busy," he said. "It also seems to go by faster and faster as you gain responsibilities. I'm amazed at how quickly 23 years have gone by. Enjoy it all and never look forward to something else. Even challenges are a blessing."