Ireland Degges
L. Neil Thurgood, a retired U.S. Army lieutenant general with almost four decades of military service, has joined the board of advisers of the defense and space-focused company BlueHalo.
As a member, Thurgood will be responsible for advising an array of strategic efforts to expand BlueHalo’s presence in the defense and national security markets, the company said Wednesday.
“It is an incredible honor to welcome General Thurgood to the BlueHalo team. His leadership, strategic vision, and proven success at establishing rapid development pathways will be an incredible asset to our company as we continue to build an enduring platform and develop capabilities to address near-peer and asymmetric threats faced by our nation,” said Jonathan Moneymaker, CEO of BlueHalo and a Wash100 Award winner.
Thurgood expressed his excitement to join the organization and to work with its mission-focused team in developing capabilities to confront present and future challenges.
Prior to his retirement, Thurgood served in the military for 37 years. He was commissioned as an aviation branch officer in 1986 and served in various company grade and battalion aviation roles both domestically and internationally, including combat deployments in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom in Iraq.
In his most recent position as director for hypersonics, directed energy, space and rapid Acquisition and the Army Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office, Thurgood pushed to swiftly develop, prototype, test and field new technologies, which played an important role in providing mission-critical needs to warfighters.
Thurgood also served as director for test for the Missile Defense Agency at Redstone Arsenal in Alabama, deputy director of acquisition and systems management for the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army and program executive officer for missiles and space at Redstone Arsenal.
Throughout his career, Thurgood worked to develop industry partnerships to bolster strategic capabilities and progress Army modernization goals.
“I have spent my career focused on providing soldiers the tools and resources they need to complete their mission successfully and return home safely. Though I’ve now hung up my uniform, I still wake up every day with that same desire to support our soldiers,” Thurgood emphasized.
