HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. -- Electronic Systems Directorate Engineering Director culminated 21 years of civil service to the U.S. Air Force during a Jan. 15 retirement ceremony here.
Stephen Falcone helped to field new technologies delivering key sensor and agile command and control capabilities for the Electronic Systems Directorate during his career.
“At Hanscom we have an expert, an engineering technical leader, a dedicated acquisition warrior and a great mentor,” said Steven Wert, deputy assistant secretary for Acquisition Integration.
Wert, the former Digital Directorate (now Electronic Systems Directorate) program executive officer, officiated the ceremony and commended Falcone for his work ethic, command of complexity, dedication and warfighter focus.
“I worked directly with Steve from 2015 to late 2024,” said Wert. “He was the senior functional leader for an engineering and information technology workforce of more than 1,500 people working 300 programs at various locations.”
During his tenure, Falcone empowered a 1,500-member engineering, cyber and information technology team across geographically separated locations that designed, developed, tested, fielded and sustained acquisition programs.
In his remarks, Falcone emphasized the importance of continuing to move beyond development and into operational delivery.
“Please push to get things to the warfighter,” said Falcone. “Not into test, not into a design, but to field something that the warfighter can use.”
He also directed organizational changes and was instrumental in overseeing the directorate’s transformation from PEO Digital to Electronic Systems in 2024.
In the process, he modernized agile software development and served as a champion for the adoption of machine learning and artificial intelligence.
Col. William Collins, deputy PEO for Electronic Systems, lauded Falcone for his devoted service.
“Thank you for your selfless support and unfailing perseverance serving our country with pride and distinction,” said Collins.
Prior to serving as director of engineering, Falcone held a variety of technical leadership roles, including chief engineer for the Theater Battle Control Division from 2015 to 2018, where he was responsible for technical and programmatic execution.
During the ceremony, Lea Kirkwood, PEO for Electronic Systems, presented a certificate of service and a formal citation from Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey.