Command/organization: Aircraft Survivability Equipment Project Management Office, Program Executive Office for Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors
Title: Lead systems engineer
Years of service in workforce: 10
Years of military service: 3
DAWIA certifications: Level III in systems engineering; Level II in program management
Education: Completing a dual MBA and master’s degree in industrial and systems engineering, Auburn University (expected December); B.S. in physics, Baylor University

Clinton Spratley

by Ms. Mary Kate Aylward

Clinton E. Spratley spent three years on active duty with the Air Force before lending his engineering background to the Army’s efforts to improve aircraft survivability. After leaving the Air Force, he joined the Army Acquisition Workforce, first as a contractor and then as a civilian employee of the Program Executive Office for Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors (PEO IEW&S) in Huntsville, Alabama.

Spratley is lead systems engineer for the Infrared Countermeasures (IRCM) Product Office within the Aircraft Survivability Equipment Project Management Office, working on systems that protect aircraft from infrared homing (heat-seeking) missiles by confusing the missiles’ ability to read or lock on to the aircraft’s infrared signature. “The IRCM family of systems are important to the warfighter because they provide protection from heat-seeking surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles,” Spratley noted. “I always go home knowing that we are making a real difference in protecting our Soldiers’ lives and are one step closer to bringing our troops home alive.”

Spratley supports two systems: the Acquisition Category (ACAT) I-C Advanced Threat (AT) IRCM system and the ACAT I-D Common IRCM system. ATIRCM is currently fielded to a limited subset of aircraft that provide laser-based countermeasure protection to Army air crews. Common Infrared Countermeasures (CIRCM), now in the engineering and manufacturing development phase, is the next-generation laser-based countermeasure system for DOD’s rotary-wing, tilt-rotor and slow-moving fixed-wing fleet.

“I have had the opportunity to support an ACAT I-D program through two major phases of the acquisition life cycle as it moved from the competitive prototyping stage, past milestone [MS] A into the technology development phase, and past MS B into the engineering and manufacturing development phase,” Spratley said. He credits his leadership, both uniformed and civilian, with giving him this opportunity, which he calls a high point of his career. “I have been very fortunate with the leadership I have served under. The most valuable mentor that I have had is my current supervisor, Jason Matheney, deputy product manager (PM) for infrared countermeasures. He has assigned me tasks that allowed me to stretch beyond my comfort zone while consistently being held to a high standard of quality on my products. I attribute much of my success so far to his mentorship.”

As CIRCM moves from the lab to the airfield, Spratley has helped with the creation of two sets of milestone decision documents, two separate contract requirement packages, two source selection evaluation boards and three major program milestones (MS A, Pre-Request for Proposal Release Decision Point and MS B). Working on a major, high-dollar program with oversight from the Office of the Secretary of Defense as it moves through the decision-making process gave Spratley an appreciation for “the vast complexity of the acquisition process … and the non-technical activities,” he noted.

Being involved with the aspects of programs that aren’t related to engineering “has made me a better systems engineer,” he said, and he recommends pursuing any chance to step outside one’s immediate job description through classes or developmental assignments. “It is too easy to get caught up with just getting our daily job completed, but then we don’t leave time for ourselves to grow. When your workload slows down, look for an opportunity outside your immediate comfort zone to temporarily help out.”

While in the Air Force, Spratley served as acquisition officer at the Air Force Research Laboratory in the Space Vehicles Directorate at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. After leaving the Air Force, Spratley knew he wanted to join the Army Acquisition Workforce “to have a greater influence on programs to make a lasting impact in warfighter survivability.”

His transition to Army acquisition required a shift in mindset. “My Air Force experience was vastly different than the work I am doing now with Army aviation,” he said. Working in an Army countermeasures office focuses on responding to adversaries’ capabilities and responding directly to operational threats, Spratley explained. “This focus means having to understand how the Army fights, which is significantly different than Air Force operations—especially space-based operations.” In transitioning to Army acquisition, he had to learn about Army tactics, aircraft capabilities, command, control and communications systems, and other Army weapons systems. “Ultimately the acquisition structure is the same, with some slight variants in terminology, but how Army aviation programs move through the Pentagon for review and approval is different than space-based systems with more focus on production, operations and sustainment costs,” he said.

Feedback from Soldiers in the field validates his decision to switch. “Working on these systems brings me great pride because we work with Army aviators who have been in harm’s way and benefitted from the protections that our systems provide.”

“Faces of the Force” is an online series highlighting members of the Army Acquisition Workforce through the power of individual stories. Profiles are produced by the U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center Communication and Support Branch, working closely with public affairs officers to feature Soldiers and civilians serving in various AL&T disciplines. For more information, or to nominate someone, please go to https://asc.army.mil/web/publications/army-alt-submissions/.