Donald Winter | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2006 | |
| 74thUnited States Secretary of the Navy | |
| In office January 3, 2006 – March 13, 2009 | |
| President | George W. Bush Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Gordon R. England |
| Succeeded by | Ray Mabus |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Donald Charles Winter (1948-06-15)June 15, 1948 (age 77) New York City,New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Linda |
| Education | University of Rochester (BS) University of Michigan (MS,PhD) |
Donald Charles Winter (born June 15, 1948)[1] is anAmerican technologist and business leader who served asUnited States Secretary of the Navy.[2] A former top executive ofTRW, Aerospace & Defense, he was nominated in 2005 by PresidentGeorge W. Bush, confirmed by theUnited States Senate, and took the oath of office on January 3, 2006. In January 2009 Defense SecretaryRobert Gates requested that Winter remain in office until President Obama picked his successor on March 13, 2009.[3] He resigned on March 13.[4]
Winter earned abachelor's degree (with highest distinction) inphysics from theUniversity of Rochester in 1969. He received amaster's degree in 1970, and adoctorate in physics in 1972, from theUniversity of Michigan.
He joined theaerospace technology companyTRW in 1972, and directedlaser physics projects inRedondo Beach, California. By 1978, he was head of the optics department there.
In 1980, Winter received a three-year appointment to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), serving under Dr. Bob Cooper during the very early years of research into the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) proposed by PresidentRonald Reagan. Winter's main responsibility was for Talon Gold, an advanced acquisition, tracking, and pointing experiment in space. During that period, he was awarded the Secretary of Defense's Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service.
In 1982, Winter resigned from his DARPA appointment early and returned to TRW, where he held senior systems engineering and program management responsibilities for a variety of space system programs for the next eight years. From 1990 through 1997, as vice president and general manager of the defense systems division of TRW's Space & Electronics (S&E) business, Winter directed space systems activities that supported the national defense effort.
Winter was president andCEO of TRW Systems[5] from January 2000 until its acquisition byNorthrop Grumman in December 2002. After the Northrop acquisition, Winter became head of Northrop Grumman Mission Systems[6] until his nomination by President Bush to become the civilian head of the Department of the Navy. He was elected to member of the National Academy of Engineering in 2002.[7]
He is currently Professor of Practice, Department of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering at the University of Michigan.[8]
In 2015, Winter was appointed to an expert advisory panel on Australia'sFuture Submarine Program, overseeing the competitive evaluation of bidders.[9] He was appointed chairman of Australia's Naval Shipbuilding Advisory Board by theTurnbull government in 2016.[10] In March 2021, it was reported that he was working as a special advisor to Prime MinisterScott Morrison on shipbuilding.[11]
| Government offices | ||
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| Preceded by | United States Secretary of the Navy January 2006–2009 | Succeeded by |
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| National | |
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