Susan Willbanks

Susan Willbanks serves as Deputy Program Manager at Headquarters, Air Force Material Command (FA5066), where she plays a pivotal role in advancing the Department of the Air Force’s mission to sustain air superiority through the acquisition of cutting-edge aerospace, electronic, and analytical systems. She oversees the planning, execution, and lifecycle management of high-priority R&D and test instrumentation contracts, ensuring alignment with modernization goals for aircraft sensor suites, communications architectures, and weapons system validation infrastructure. Her procurement portfolio centers on complex, technical acquisitions requiring rigorous engineering validation and integration with classified platforms, often involving multidisciplinary teams across government and industry. While specific contractor relationships are not publicly enumerated, Willbanks collaborates with a broad spectrum of defense technology providers, including prime contractors with deep expertise in electronic warfare systems, radar signal processing, and flight test instrumentation. Her working relationships emphasize technical capability over volume, favoring vendors with proven experience in government-certified test environments and secure development lifecycle practices. She engages partners capable of delivering custom-engineered solutions under performance-based contracting frameworks, often requiring rapid prototyping and field-deployable validation. Willbanks’ acquisition portfolio reflects a 100% non-set-aside orientation, indicating a strategic emphasis on technical merit and mission-critical capability over socioeconomic preferences. This pattern suggests a procurement environment where specialized engineering expertise and system interoperability take precedence over small business set-asides, though she remains compliant with all federal contracting regulations and may support small businesses through subcontracting pathways when technically justified. Her primary focus lies in NAICS 541712—Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences—where she procures advanced laboratory-grade instrumentation, telemetry systems, data acquisition platforms, and embedded control software. Her domain expertise spans aerospace test and evaluation, electromagnetic compatibility, and mission-critical sensor integration, making her a key interface between operational requirements and industrial innovation in defense R&D.