Dr.Sathish Reddy honored by The Space Society of Mechanical Engineers.

The Space Society of Mechanical Engineers (SSME), has conferred Dr. G. Satheesh Reddy, former Scientific Advisor to Raksha Mantri and President of AeSI, with Honorary Lifetime Membership at a function held in SAC, ISRO, Ahmedabad. The honor was presented in the presence of Shri S. Somanath, chairman of ISRO, and Dr. D.K. Singh, Associate Director of SAC, ISRO, to recognise Dr.Reddy's outstanding contributions to aerospace and defense technologies.

Dr. Satheesh Reddy, a world-renowned defence and aerospace scientist, is acclaimed for his significant contributions to Defence R&D and technology leadership spanning several decades. He started his journey as a young navigation engineer and later as Technology Director developing many inertial sensors and diversified hybrid navigation systems making India self-reliant in navigation technologies. 

As Project Director, he developed India’s first guided bomb paving the way for Indigenous development of long-range smart precision weapons. Dr Reddy spearheaded the development of advanced avionics as Director of Research Centre Imarat (RCI) and headed Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Missile Complex as Director General, Missiles and Strategic Systems.

During his illustrious career, he held many prestigious appointments in the Government of India as the Secretary Department of Defence R&D, Chairman, of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Director General, of the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) & the Scientific Adviser to Raksha Mantri (SA to RM).

He is presently the President of the Aeronautical Society of India, a leading professional body in the field of aeronautics, aviation, and aerospace, founded in 1948 in India. He led the development of missiles, strategic systems, fighter aircraft, unmanned aerial defence systems, underwater systems, radars, electronic warfare systems, armored vehicles, armaments & other advanced technologies. His phenomenal contributions made India self-reliant in many critical areas and enhanced defence exports substantially. 

Dr. Reddy is the chief architect of the country’s first Anti-Satellite missile test (ASAT) “Mission Shakti”, elevating India to the elite club of four nations. His notable contributions to the development of a Hypersonic technology demonstrator vehicle, a series of new generation long and short-range missiles, Air Independent Propulsion for submarines, Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS), Drone & Anti-drone systems, Light Weight Tanks, and Precision Guided Munitions among many others have been transformative in enhancing the defence capabilities of India.

A visionary, Dr Reddy was instrumental in the formulation of many progressive policies, strategies & initiatives for strengthening defence R&D eco-system in India. He established state-of-the-art technical infrastructure, DRDO-Industry-Academia (DIA) centers of excellence, and young scientist laboratories and facilitated the participation of private industry, MSMEs, Startups & Academia in a big way.

He played a vital role in combating the COVID-19 pandemic. Under his leadership, DRDO developed more than 75 products including high-end ventilators, large oxygen plants, anti-Covid drug 2-DG, and personal protective equipment (PPE), and transferred the technology to over 100 industries & built many COVID hospitals across the country.

He is the first Indian in over 100 years to be conferred with the prestigious Honorary Fellowship and Silver Medal by the Royal Aeronautical Society London, an internationally renowned Scientific Society founded in 1866. He is the first recipient outside the USA in over four decades to be honored with the prestigious Missile Systems Award by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), the world’s largest Aerospace Technical Society. Other distinguished awards conferred on Dr Reddy include the National Aeronautical Prize, the National Systems Gold Medal, the National Design Award, the Astronautical Society of India Aryabhata Award, the first IEI-IEEE (USA) Engineering Excellence Award, Homi J Bhabha Gold Medal, the Scientist of the Year and Young Scientist Award from Hon’ble Prime Minister of India.

For his sustained R&D contributions, he has been honored and inducted as Honorary Fellow, Honorary Member, Foreign Member, and Fellow, and also as part of Governing Bodies of over 35 scientific, professional, and academic institutions spread across India and abroad. He has been conferred with over 25 Honorary degrees of Doctorate from reputed institutes. Presently, he serves as a member of the Council of IISc, Bengaluru, and has previously served as a member of the Council of IITs. He was also a Special Invitee to the Prime Minister's Science, Technology, and Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC), Government of India.