Analytical Nature Leads Engineer to Rewarding AFRL Career Published March 11, 2014 By Laura Dempsey, AFRL/CCX AFRL Headquarters WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio -- Engineering may not be a recognized genetic trait, but Neeraj Pujara, deputy division chief of spectrum warfare at the Air Force Research Laboratory's Sensors Directorate, believes he got his analytical nature from his father. "My dad got his PhD in mathematics and taught electrical engineering," Pujara says, "and I share this interest. . . . Engineering just seemed like the right area for me." He entered the University of Akron (Akron, OH) in a pre-med program, but switched to engineering and Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. It was, he said, "the best decision I ever made." He earned his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 1987, and immediately went to work almost across the street at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, where AFRL's Sensors Directorate is based. "When I graduated, I had offers in private industry and also from AFRL," he said. "I liked what the Air Force had to offer and, honestly, I wanted to stay close to home. I'm close to my family and this is a great area to live in." The Air Force funded Pujara's master's degree, also in electrical engineering, which he completed in 1991 at Wright State. While in graduate school, he taught an electronic circuits lab; some of his former students are AFRL colleagues today. Pujara's career at AFRL began in the navigation group, "even before GPS became operational," he recalled. "I was doing a lot of simulation to determine what happens when you integrate multiple systems together. I gravitated to the GPS technology tech base doing hands-on, in-house research. We know the benefits of GPS today, but I was fortunate to be there on the ground floor." Later, Pujara moved into project management. "I started working in smaller programs where you come up with research ideas and get some of the funding from organizations like SBIR (Small Business Innovation Research). These programs are great for young engineers. They're smaller dollar efforts where you do some of the work yourself and then have a contractor work with you. "Then I got into programs that were closer to transitioning to the end user, the warfighter," he says. "These are bigger programs, bigger dollars, and use much more mature technology. I've been fortunate in my career to see how GPS works in different aircraft across the Air Force and how it helps in targeting applications. I think I've been able to make a difference on multiple Air Force platforms." In 2005, Pujara became branch chief, managing the navigation branch - the place his career began. In 2012, he was promoted to deputy division chief. The Spectrum Warfare Division works mainly in the areas of navigation and communication, electronic warfare, avionics vulnerability and electro-optical countermeasures. "It probably isn't as technical as what I used to do," admits Pujara, "you have to have technical depth and expertise to grow in our organization. I've been very fortunate to have had the opportunity to grow and help defend our nation. And I've had fun along the way."