Captain wins national 'Women in Aerospace Achievement Award'

CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, Fla. -- A program manager here has been named a co-winner of the national-level "Women in Aerospace Achievement Award."

Capt. Amanda Zuber, a Space-Based Infrared System Field Program Manager with the 45th Launch Support Squadron, will receive her award in the nation's capital Nov. 1.

"This is a big award and tremendous honor," said Col. Matthew Skeen, 45th Launch Group commander. "It highlights Captain Zuber's outstanding contributions to aerospace and the importance of the 45th Space Wing mission to the nation."

Captain Zuber's main responsibilities as an FPM included leading all the activities at the Cape Canaveral launch site over a grueling one-year process.

These activities included technical operations from unloading the satellite from its  shipping container to final assembly of the satellite and placing it atop a 200-foot tall rocket.

She also simultaneously performed managerial tasks such as coordinating the schedules of multiple offices on both the Florida coast, California coast and in Washington D.C.

According to her nomination packet, Captain Zuber showed an "innate ability to logically work through problems while seeking out the win-win outcome to situations made her the perfect selection as the FPM for SBIRS, resulting in the launch of a  revolutionary new ballistic missile defense capability for the United States."

The SBIRS satellite group, one of the nation's highest priority space programs, delivers timely, reliable and accurate missile warning information to the President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense, military commanders, multiple intelligence agencies and other key decision makers in the upper echelon of the United States government.