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Night Vision Veteran Joins ASU Team Chad St. Francis Director of Business Development, Military Programs

Aviation Specialties Unlimited, Inc. (ASU), announced this week that Chad St. Francis has joined ASU as the new director of business development for military programs.

After he served the United States Army for 22 years, Chief Warrant Officer 4 St. Francis, master Army aviator, retired from active duty in 2008. He served in several duty assignments and deployments; primarly as a Sikorsky UH-60L Black Hawk helicopter standardization pilot and RC-12P/Q “Guardrail” pilot-in-command. He began his civilian career with Insight Technology, located in Londonderry N.H., as a business development manager. In 2010, Insight Technology, was aquired by L3 Communications and St. Francis took an additional responsibility as an advanced program business development manager. Later in 2014, he was promoted to senior business development manager, responsible for L3 Insight Technology United States Special Operations Command and United States Air Force accounts.

During this time, St.Francis was the lead capture manager for three major USSOCOM programs, winning $130 million in contract awards, and successfully led a Department of Defense aviation night vision imaging systems retrofit campaign to promote L3 high-performance white phosphor image intensification tubes, winning $9 million in DOD sales. In addition, St.Francis led the application for the first-issued, industry Federal Aviation Adminstration Technical Standard Order 164(a) NVG Certification to L3 Insight Technology in 2017, offering FAA approved specification image tubes and ANVIS goggles to the domestic commerial market.

St. Francis brings with him to ASU more than 10 years of DOD business development and sales experience, with expertise in weapon mounted laser, range finding and night vision products. He graduated magna cum laude from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University with a Bachelor of Science degree in professional aeronautics.

“ASU continues to innovate and develop new products and services that are ideal for the military, said fellow U.S. Army veteran and ASU President Jim Winkel. “I have known Chad for many years and I have a great appreciation for his product knowledge and deep understanding for the needs of the military. Our global military customers already rely on our products and services and now they will have a point person at ASU that they know and trust.”

As ASU’s director of business development for military programs, St. Francis will work directly with ASU’s broad base of military customers located around the world. ASU employs 23 former members of the military that are either retired, served in some capacity or are in the National Guard or Reserve. More than one-third of ASU’s workforce have served in the military in some capacity and five of the seven new employees hired this year have military experience. Since the company was formed, ASU has worked with 77 defense organizations in 19 countries including military and ministries of defense.

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