Welcome to Industry Day 2024 

Colonel Jay A. Johnson is the Commander, 60th Air Mobility Wing, Travis Air Force Base, California. As Commander, he is responsible for the combined efforts of all wing operations and support activities associated with the worldwide air mobility mission. The C-5M Super Galaxy, KC-10 Extender, C-17 Globemaster III, and KC-46 Pegasus aircraft assigned to Travis AFB participate in airlift and aerial refueling taskings, responding to Joint Chiefs of Staff-directed combat operations and supporting U.S. State Department-sponsored humanitarian relief efforts worldwide. He is also responsible for ensuring the readiness and well-being of more than 26,100 active duty, Reserve, civilian personnel, and their families.  

Colonel Johnson graduated from San Francisco State University and received his commission as a distinguished graduate from the University of California at Berkeley in 1999. His service and leadership experience spans several key operational and staff positions at the squadron, wing, and joint staff levels. He is a graduate of Air Mobility Command’s Phoenix Mobility program and the United States Air Force’s Defense Legislative Fellowship. His deployment experience includes Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom. Prior to this position, Colonel Johnson was the Chief of Staff, Headquarters Air Education and Training Command, Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas. As Chief of Staff, he was the principal advisor to the commander and deputy commander, and principal staff leader providing guidance to eleven flying training wings, four technical training wings, a medical wing, Air University, two numbered Air Forces, nationwide recruiting operations and headquarters directors and chiefs of special staff across all functional specialties.

Welcome to Industry Day 2024, presented by Phoenix Spark. We are thrilled to welcome innovators from both public and private sectors alike to Travis Air Force Base for a day of networking, guest speakers, and showcases from base partners. On behalf of the entire team, THANK YOU for taking time out of your busy schedules to participate in this fantastic event with us. 

Major Matt "DRIP" Krussow serves as the Director of Phoenix Spark at Travis AFB, championing his team and their projects across the DoD and industry. Committed to nurturing grassroots innovations at Travis AFB, he also seeks to forge partnerships with academia and industry through venture initiatives. As a C-17A Evaluator Pilot, Major Krussow leverages his tactical expertise to drive innovation efforts aimed at enhancing the lethality and survivability of warfighters. 

General Allardice is recognized as an innovative pioneer who transforms modern complex global systems.  His efforts focus on engineering inventive solutions for the Digital Age with a focus on AI enabling applications and Cyber resilience during competition and conflict.  He developed and has led multiple symposiums and workshops on “Operational Art for the Digital Age.”   

While on active duty, Gen Allardice served as the Vice Commander for Air Mobility Command, the Commander, 18th Air Force and as Director for Strategy, Plans and Policy, United States Central Command.   Mr. Allardice has served as Senior Advisor to the OSD Cyber Warfare Directorate, a Senior Fellow to National Defense University, a Highly Qualified Expert for the Joint Staff, J7 serving as a senior mentor to multiple Combatant Commanders and as an Adjunct Contract Professor to the US Air Force focusing on the areas of Transportation, Space, Cyber Resilience and Joint Information Operations.   

Tony Perez has spent his career at the intersection of military innovation and emerging technology. While serving the Air Force, he helped establish a number of innovation programs including AFWERX, the Defense Ventures Program, and Phoenix Spark. These programs democratized government resources and empowered people across the military, industry, and academia tosolve defense problems. As a founding member of AFWERX, Tony helped grow it from a concept into a marquee program. During his tenure, AFWERX invested $1.85 billion in over 1,800 companies, catalyzing an additional $11.7 billion in public and private funding for these businesses. The impact of AFWERX was recognized by Fast Company in 2020 when it became the first military organization listed on the annual “Best Workplace for Innovators”. Ranked number 16, AFWERX was positioned above major tech companies like Amazon, Salesforce, and Slack. In October 2020, Tony transitioned from his active-duty role at

AFWERX, but continues to serve as an Air Force reservist supporting the Air Force CIO’s office. In the private sector, Tony is the co-founder and managing partner of Selas Ventures, a dual-use technology firm. Selas Ventures takes a defense first approach to the dual-use market and has portfolios in biotechnology, big data/AI, and energy technology. Tony holds a Bachelor’s degree in Systems Engineering Management from the United States Air Force Academy and a Master’s degree in Systems Engineering from Johns Hopkins University. He is also a Senior Pilot in the Air Force, with over 3,000 flight hours in aircraft such as the KC-10 tanker and T-6 trainer, including more than 700 combat hours in conflict zones like Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria.

Andrea has an extensive background in working with federal programs as well as cybersecurity inspections and compliance. She has spoken at the national level as a subject matter expert on advanced cyber threats including data security, cyber supply chain risk management, and social engineering.  

Andrea has previously conducted on-site cyber hygiene inspections for the DoD, is a CMMC-AB Registered Practitioner (RP), holds an (ISC)² Cybersecurity Certification, is a DEF CON Black Badge winner for Social Engineering, and earned a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) focused in Management and Leadership from Rollins College - Crummer Graduate School of Business. 

Ivan is an active member of the cyber community, presenting at various security conferences and workshops. Currently specializing in Detection Engineering, he is passionate about building mechanisms to identify cyber threats. With over a decade of cumulative experience in Intelligence, Special Operations, and Cyber Security, he is eager to share his perspective on identifying cyber threats and protecting yourself against them.  

Donald Hester is a cybersecurity advocate who has worked to make the world cybersafe in his roles as a cybersecurity auditor, educator, and cybersecurity manager for the past 25 years. Donald joined the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) in 2023. He currently serves as a cybersecurity advisor in San Francisco and covers Northern California. Prior to CISA, Donald was the cybersecurity manager at City of Livermore, managing governance, risk, and compliance to ensure Livermore was cyber safe. 

Prior to Livermore, Donald gained more than 20 years of experience as an IT auditor and cybersecurity director at Maze & Associates. He has taught IT and cybersecurity courses for a number of universities and colleges. 

Donald has a master’s degree from Biola University and a bachelor’s degree in Security Management from American Military University. Donald’s professional certifications include; CISSP, CISA, CGRC, CRISC, Security+, CTT+, and MOFF. Donald is a Marine Veteran and started his career as a field radio operator. 

Mr. Frederick D. Thaden is currently assigned as the Deputy Director of Space Delta 13 at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama, where he is responsible for supporting the Delta’s efforts to build a Guardian force development program to educate more than 16,000 officers, enlisted members, and civilians across the United States Space Force. Mr. Thaden began his civilian career in November 2022 upon retiring from the US Air Force after 31 years of active-duty service.

Colonel (ret) Thaden was commissioned in 1991 as a graduate of the Reserve Officer Training Corps at Brigham Young University. His assignments included duties as a behavioral scientist, social actions chief, manning division chief, squadron commander, vice commander, installation commander, and wing commander. He is a graduate of Squadron Officer School, the Air Command and Staff College and the National War College. Colonel (ret) Thaden is a veteran of Operations Joint Forge, Joint Guardian, Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Mr. Thaden is married to DeeDee; they have seven children and seventeen grandchildren.