MITRE's Lillian Zarrelli Ryals Named Board Chair of Women in Aerospace

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

MCLEAN, Va., January 4, 2012 — The MITRE Corporation is pleased to announce that Lillian Zarrelli Ryals was recently elected chair of the board of directors of Women in Aerospace (WIA). Ryals, who was previously WIA vice chair, is executive director for Air Traffic Systems and Operations in MITRE's Center for Advanced Aviation System Development (CAASD), the federally funded research and development center that the company operates for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Her one-year term began January 1.

Founded in 1985, WIA is dedicated to expanding women's opportunities for leadership and increasing their visibility in the aerospace community in the U.S. and internationally. The Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization has more than 600 individual members—both women and men—and over 50 corporate members, including MITRE.

Ryals, who joined MITRE in 1979, has more than 30 years of experience working in the aviation sector across a broad range of National Airspace System modernization and operations activities. In addition to directing CAASD's work in ATM/CNS (Air Traffic Management/Communication Navigation Surveillance) systems evolution and operations, safety, and security for the FAA, Ryals is corporate executive director for MITRE's company-wide activities in support of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). In this role, Ryals is responsible for aligning MITRE's NextGen work across multiple government agencies, including the FAA, the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Joint Planning and Development Office.

Throughout her career, Ryals has actively supported national and international aviation standards bodies, including the International Civil Aviation Organization and RTCA. She serves on the RTCA NextGen Advisory Committee Subcommittee and is a member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the Air Traffic Control Association, and the Aero Club. She has participated in several aviation industry committees, including the FAA Research, Engineering, and Development Advisory Committee Air Traffic Systems Subcommittee and the American Institute of Aerospace and Aeronautics Digital Avionics Systems Committee.

Ryals is an active volunteer in support of the advancement of women and girls in science, technology, engineering, and math, particularly in the aerospace sector.

About The MITRE Corporation

The MITRE Corporation is a not-for-profit organization that provides systems engineering, research and development, and information technology support to the government. It operates federally funded research and development centers for the Department of Defense, the Federal Aviation Administration, the Internal Revenue Service and Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, with principal locations in Bedford, Mass., and McLean, Va. To learn more, visit: www.mitre.org.

About Women in Aerospace

Women in Aerospace (WIA) is dedicated to expanding women's opportunities for leadership and increasing their visibility in the aerospace community. Its membership—women and men—shares an interest in a broad spectrum of aerospace issues including aviation, human space flight, remote sensing, robotic space exploration, satellite communications and the policy issues surrounding these fields. To learn more, visit: www.womeninaerospace.org.

Solutions That Make a Difference.®
Copyright © 1997-2013, The MITRE Corporation. All rights reserved.
MITRE is a registered trademark of The MITRE Corporation.
Material on this site may be copied and distributed with permission only.

Privacy Policy | Contact Us