Lt Col Luke J. Hagen is the Head of the Department of Astronautics, United States Air Force Academy, Colorado. As Department Head, he leads 25 faculty and staff members in developing and teaching 24 college-level courses in Astronautical Engineering and Space Operations. He also teaches engineering courses in introductory and intermediate astrodynamics and serves as a faculty advisor on the Falcon Satellite (FalconSAT) program.

Lt Col Hagen is a 2005 graduate of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Prescott, Arizona with a degree in Aerospace Engineering and earned his commission through the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps. Lt Col Hagen served sixteen years in the United States Air Force before transferring to the United States Space Force in July 2021. As a company grade officer, he spent four years in the Global Positioning System program office and was the launch manager for the GPS-IIR-16(M) satellite mission and developed and managed launch site operations for the GPS IIF satellites at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, which included sending a satellite “Pathfinder” to the launch site to validate launch processing plans and procedures.

Prior to his current assignment, Lt Col Hagen served as the Deputy Program Manager for the Advanced Integration Team, Systems Technology Office, Air Force Research Laboratory. As the Deputy PM, Lt Col Hagen lead two Secretary of the Air Force-directed programs valued at over $1.5B and was responsible for the development of a science and technology portfolio providing technology transition to ten programs of record.

Bachelor of Science, Aerospace Engineering, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Prescott, Arizona (2005)

Master of Science, Astronautical Engineering, Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio (2011)

Doctor of Philosophy, Electronic Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, United Kingdom (2016)

GPS IIF Space Vehicle Subsystems Lead and GPS IIR/IIF Launch Manager, Navstar GPS Joint Program Office (Global Positioning Systems Wing), Los Angeles Air Force Base, California (May 2005-May 2006)

Graduate Student, Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio (July 2009-April 2011)

Instructor of Astronautics, Assistant Professor, and Executive Officer, Department of Astronautics, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado (April 2011-August 2013)

Doctoral Student, Surrey Space Centre, University of Surrey, Guildford, United Kingdom (August 2013-October 2016)

Chief Engineer of Survivability Technologies, Chief of Foundational & Emerging Technologies, and Deputy Program Manager, Systems Technology Office, Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio (October 2016-June 2021)

Deputy Chief, Internal Review & External Oversight, Combined Joint Task Force – Operation INHERENT RESOLVE, Camp Arifjan, Kuwait (April 2018-October 2018)

Assistant Professor, Deputy for Operations, Deputy Department Head, and Department Head, Department of Astronautics, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado (June 2021-Present)

Outstanding Aerospace Engineering Student of the Year, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Prescott, Arizona (2005)

Squadron CGO of the Quarter, GPS Block II Squadron, GPS Wing, Los Angeles AFB, California (2007)

Roger R. Bate Award, Outstanding First Year Instructor, Department of Astronautics, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado (2012)

FGO of the Quarter, Systems Technology Office, Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio (2020)

Outstanding Academy Educator, Department of Astronautics, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado (2023)

Professional Memberships and Associations

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Senior Member
Sigma Gamma Tau, Aerospace Engineering Honor Society
Tau Beta Pi, Engineering Honor Society