Colonel James "Jim" Allan Ball

A retired Air Force Colonel and DOD Acquisition Manager, Colonel Ball had extensive experience in research and development, test and evaluation, acquisition management, and technology transfer & commercialization. He is the former Director of Technology Applications for the DoD Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) Organization (U.S. Missile Defense Agency) and was responsible for the development and management of a program for the transition of technology from SDI “Star Wars” research to other applications for Federal Government Agencies, other Department of Defense programs, and commercial products. The technology transition programs that he established, over the past more than thirty years, have assisted in the establishment of numerous spin-off companies, Cooperative R&D Agreements (CRADAs) between industry and Federal laboratories, and products in the marketplace.

Colonel Ball’s military career encompassed flight test engineering, special operations, acquisition management, testing, and logistics. He served as an aircraft maintenance officer of several operational Air Force units including an Air Commando/Special Operations Squadron in Vietnam and a flight test wing. His diverse background in engineering ranges from development of transonic flow simulation techniques to the design of engineering modifications for flight tests of avionics and defensive systems for the B-1 Aircraft. His acquisition management experience included responsibilities for the operational support and deployment of the A-10 Thunderbolt close air support aircraft and senior staff management responsibilities for new aircraft and aeronautical systems including the F-15 and Air Force engine programs. He was responsible for introducing modular automated test equipment into the Air Force inventory as well as the initiative to introduce non-flammable hydraulic fluid into combat aircraft systems, which saved many lives in the years following. Prior to his assignment to the SDI program he was the Executive Assistant to the Deputy Under-Secretary of Defense for Test and Evaluation in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. In this position he managed the DOD Foreign Weapons Evaluation Program and the NATO Cooperative Testing Program (currently known as the DOD Foreign Comparative Test Program), overseeing the evaluation of allied military systems, munitions, equipment, and technologies with potential application to U.S. military requirements. During his management of this program, the U.S. Armed Services accepted over 30 foreign developed systems for use, avoiding significant expenditures in research and development.

Jim’s second career, from 1989 through 2012, was as a private consultant in technology management and commercialization who specialized in aerospace, energy, environmental, emergency management, public safety, and counter-terrorism technology applications. During this time after his Air Force Career, he worked with The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Department of Defense Agencies, the Department of Energy, The Department of Justice, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Battelle Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, The National Technology Transfer Center (NTTC), the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Emergency Response Technology Program that he established for FEMA in 1998, and several private corporations and universities in support of technology development and commercialization programs and studies. During the last 12 years of his career he served as the Technology Transition Manager for the Combating Terrorism Technology Support Office of the DOD. He retired in December 2012.

Jim held a BS in Aerospace Engineering from Penn State and a MS in Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering from The Air Force Institute of Technology, He was a former faculty member of the University of Virginia and a graduate of the Industrial College of the Armed Forces of the National Defense University. He was a member of Tau Beta Pi and Sigma Gamma Tau National Honorary Engineering Societies, and founder of the Inventors Network of the Capital Area. Since his retirement from the Air Force, Jim served with the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary for over thirty-four years as a Coxswain, active in Coast Guard Search and Rescue, communications, vessel safety examinations, public education, and Homeland Security operations. He received over 31 military awards and decorations during his service and received the Lifetime Achievement Award from President Obama in 2016.

Jim leaves behind his loving wife, Linda Wever; two daughters, Elizabeth Hay (William) and Dr. Carolyn Prince (David); a stepdaughter, Lanette McNeil (Andrew); stepson, Eric Wever; six granddaughters and a grandson, to include Caroline Judy, Alice, Emma, and Charlotte McNeil, Zoe Wever, Ellery Prince and Benjamin Prince. He loved them all very much.

A service for Jim will be held Friday, May 9, 2025 at 2:30 PM at Hickory Neck Episcopal Church, 8300 Richmond Road, Toano, Virginia.