Faculty

Mr. John Minor is the Provost of Unmanned Vehicle University (UVU).  Previously, he served on the UVU Board of Directors and as a UVU Regional Director for the Mountain West Region.  As Provost, he is responsible for all aspects of the academic mission to include academic curricula and personnel, unmanned flight training/instruction, and unmanned systems research programs. Mr. Minor oversees the departmental efforts of the University’s three Deans: Dean of the School of Unmanned Systems Technology, Dean of the School of Flight Training, and Dean of Research Programs and Academic Affairs.

Prior to becoming Provost for Unmanned Vehicle University, Mr. Minor owned and operated American Eagle Aerospace LLC and was the Division Chief for the Air Force Sustainment Center’s Scientist and Engineer Strategic Workforce Management and Development Division, Ogden Air Logistics Center, Engineering Directorate, Hill Air Force Base, Utah.  Prior to that, he served as the Chief of the Systems Engineering Division for Hill AFB.

Mr. Minor has over 36 years of professional experience and retired from the U.S. Department of the Air Force after serving over 27 years in both military and civilian capacities. He is an internationally recognized subject matter expert on airborne remote sensing, airborne sensors and systems, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and UAV systems, systems engineering, and flight test and evaluation.  He is a highly decorated academic leader, instructor and lecturer.  He is the former Technical Director of the USAF Test Pilot School.  In this capacity he was responsible for executing a 50 semester hour graduate level program graduating 48 student test pilots and engineers a year with a Master of Science in Flight Test Engineering as well as overseeing a 4000 hour annual test flying training program.   From 2006 to 2008, he led the efforts to get the USAF Test Pilot School academically recognized, accredited and approved by the U.S. Department of Education, the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI) and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools for degree granting authority under USC Title 10, a first in the 63 year history of the military school.

During his career, Minor served on the technical staff of the Air Force Flight Test Center, the USAF Test Pilot School, the 46th Test Wing, Lockheed Martin, the Lockheed Skunk Works®, Loral, and Sverdrup Technology. He began his career with the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing as a sensor system specialist on the SR-71 and U-2 aircraft. Since, he has worked on a number of high-value military programs to include the Low Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infrared for Night (LANTIRN), the F/A-18D (RC) Tactical Reconnaissance (TAC RECCE), the Advanced Tactical Air Reconnaissance System (ATARS), and the RQ-3A TIER III Minus (DarkStar) High Altitude, Low Observable, Endurance, Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV), as well as numerous other classified manned and unmanned system programs.

Mr. Minor accumulated over 1500 flying hours in over 30 different aircraft types, including 400+ hours in the RF-4C and 300+ hours in the F-16B/D. As a USAF Test Pilot School’s former Systems Master Instructor (1999-2003), he was responsible for developing a state of the art curricula and teaching sensors, weapons, systems, electronic warfare, directed energy, and unmanned systems theory, operations, and flight test to the next generation of USAF Test Pilots, Electronic Warfare Officers, and Flight Test Engineers. He has taught many short courses around the world for Society of Flight Test Engineers, the Association of Old Crows (AOC), Technology Training Corporation, and has lectured extensively throughout Europe to several Technical Universities and for the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS).  Mr. Minor holds BSEE and MSEE degrees “with distinction” from the University of New Mexico under Air Force Institute of Technology sponsorship.  He is an Air War College and USAF Test Pilot School graduate.

Mr. Minor has been honored with numerous awards and decorations to include: the Civilian Meritorious Service Medal, the 412th Test Wing’s Senior Leader of the Year Award, the Society of Flight Test Engineers Directors and Fellow Awards, the San Fernando Valley Engineers’ Council Distinguished Engineering Project Achievement Award, and the Engineers’ Council Distinguished Engineering Life Achievement Award for his educational contributions to the Edwards AFB engineering community. In 2010 he was honored to receive the “Kelly” Johnson Award for obtaining “Engineering Excellence” throughout his 35-year career by the Society of Flight Test Engineers.  John received the Team Hill AFB “Spirit Award” in 2011 and in 2014 he was honored to be selected as the IEEE Senior Engineering Manager of the Year for Region 6, Utah and Idaho.

Mr Minor is a member of the following professional organizations: the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), Fellow of the Society of Flight Test Engineers, (SFTE), Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) , the International Test and Evaluation Association (ITEA) , Senior Member of the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE), the Air Force Association (AFA), and the Flight Test Historical Foundation.  He was the President of the Society of Flight Test Engineers from 2004-2006.  Mr. Minor also has been inducted to the following science and engineering honor societies: Eta Kappa Nu – The Electrical and Computer Engineering Honor Society, Tau Beta Pi – The Engineering Honor Society, and Kappa Mu Epsilon – the Mathematics Honor Society.