Deanna L. Ryals

Ms. Deanna L. Ryals, a member of the Senior Executive Service, is the Director of Space International Affairs, Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force, International Affairs, the Pentagon ,Arlington, Virginia. In this capacity, she is the principal advisor on space international affairs to senior Department of the Air Force leaders, including the Secretary of the Air Force, Chief of Space Operations, Chief of Staff of the Air Force and Secretary of the Air Force International Affairs leadership. Ms. Ryals leads teams managing space security cooperation functions that include international armaments cooperation, foreign military sales, politico-military matters and education programs. She is also the DAF senior representative regarding space issues involving foreign partners to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Joint Staff, combatant commands, Defense Security Cooperation Agency, military departments, security cooperation implementing agencies, service components, major commands and field commands. Ms. Ryals is responsible for the development and coordination of DAF guidance, policies and strategies for collaboration with allies and partners, the interagency and industry on space matters critical to DAF warfighting requirements and operations.

Ms. Ryals served previously both in civil service and industry in space acquisition, program management and international affairs. She started her space career as a U.S. Air Force acquisition officer, managing a Military Satellite Communications portfolio of over $10 billion, and began her international affairs career when she became the Air Force Acquisition focal point for Allied space activities, during which she championed the largest space international partnership in Air Force history with the Wideband Global SATCOM system multinational agreement. Ms. Ryals also spearheaded the first national security space payload hosted on a foreign satellite via a partnership with Norway. Additionally, she has advanced the Space Domain Awareness and Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) mission areas, having led collaboration between the U.S. Air Force and Japanese Ministry of Defense to host the first Space Domain Awareness payload on Japan’s PNT satellites. Further, in the SATCOM mission area, Ms. Ryals advocated a groundbreaking partnership through the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Support and Procurement Agency, enabling NATO partners to procure commercial SATCOM capabilities together.

Prior to assuming her current duties, she was the Director of International Strategy for the Assistant Chief of Space Operations for Future Capability and Partnerships, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.