Roger D Poteet

Roger D. Poteet serves as a Contract Negotiator within the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Propulsion Directorate (FA8650), where he plays a pivotal role in securing advanced aerospace technologies critical to U.S. air and space dominance. He specializes in negotiating complex research and development contracts for next-generation propulsion systems, hypersonic flight technologies, and high-performance functional materials. His work directly supports the agency’s mission to accelerate innovation by bridging cutting-edge scientific research with practical defense applications, ensuring timely and technically sound acquisition outcomes through rigorous contract formulation and vendor alignment. Poteet maintains consistent, high-impact relationships with industry leaders including UES INC, General Electric Company, DCS Corporation, Spirit Aerosystems Inc., and Advanced Thermoplastic Composites LLC. These partnerships reflect a focus on tier-one aerospace and defense contractors with proven expertise in propulsion engineering, materials science, and systems integration. His negotiation approach emphasizes technical rigor, performance-based outcomes, and long-term collaboration, fostering trust with vendors capable of delivering mission-critical solutions under demanding operational constraints. Poteet’s contracting portfolio exhibits no set-aside preferences, with 100% of awards issued under full and open competition. This reflects a deliberate focus on technical capability and mission readiness over socioeconomic classifications, prioritizing the most qualified entities regardless of business size or certification status. His approach underscores the agency’s need for specialized, high-fidelity capabilities that are currently concentrated among a limited pool of industry experts. His procurement activity is exclusively aligned with NAICS 541712—Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences—focusing on advanced propulsion systems, adaptive flight control architectures, and next-generation composite materials. He consistently engages contractors with deep domain expertise in aerothermodynamics, hypersonic vehicle integration, and high-temperature structural materials, ensuring the Air Force remains at the forefront of aerospace innovation.