Lisa Ellis

Lisa E. Ellis serves as Division Head of AIR-2.5.5 at the Naval Air Warfare Center Air Division, where she leads the acquisition and integration of advanced avionics, mission systems, and electronic warfare subsystems critical to naval air superiority. In this capacity, she oversees the full lifecycle of specialized design and engineering contracts, ensuring alignment with fleet modernization priorities and technical readiness goals. Her portfolio focuses on high-complexity, mission-critical procurements that support the development and sustainment of next-generation aircraft systems, including sensor suites, communication architectures, and embedded software solutions. She plays a pivotal role in translating operational requirements into technically sound acquisition strategies that meet rigorous defense standards. Ellis maintains long-standing relationships with leading defense contractors including SABRE SYSTEMS, LLC, THE BOEING COMPANY, SCIENCE APPLICATIONS INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION, SYSTEMS PLANNING AND ANALYSIS, INC., and ONTIC ENGINEERING & MANUFACTURING, INC. These partnerships are characterized by deep technical collaboration, sustained performance, and a shared focus on innovation in airborne systems integration. Her procurement approach emphasizes proven capability, systems engineering rigor, and iterative development cycles, often involving complex subcontracting networks to deliver integrated solutions under tight operational timelines. Ellis’s contracting activity is entirely non-set-aside, with 100% of awards issued under full and open competition. This reflects a strategic emphasis on accessing the broadest possible pool of technical expertise, prioritizing mission-critical performance over socioeconomic classifications. While small business participation is not formally targeted through set-asides, her office actively encourages subcontracting opportunities within the prime contractor ecosystem to foster industry-wide capability growth. Her primary procurement focus is under NAICS 541490 (Other Specialized Design Services), underscoring her domain expertise in advanced systems engineering, avionics architecture, and mission-critical software design. She procures end-to-end design services for airborne electronic systems, including signal processing, electronic warfare countermeasures, and secure data link integration—services essential to maintaining naval air dominance in contested environments.