As early as nine, he was interested in rocketry. Inspired by watching the Moon landings, Bruno was determined to build his own model rockets. When he found a case of 80 year old dynamite in the back of the barn, he used a pen knife to cut open the sticks and extract the explosives which became propellant for his homemade solid rocket motors.[3]
During his college career, Bruno was an astronomer’s assistant at the Lick Observatory where he focused on collecting spectra from distant galaxies using the Coude telescope in order to measure their rotation.[4]
Bruno started with Lockheed as a summer intern while still attending Cal Poly. He worked as a mechanical engineer in the quality assurance organization of the Missile Systems Division. He spent that summer working on various generations of the Fleet Ballistic Missile.[1][full citation needed]
Eventually, Bruno joined the advanced programs team where he worked on new rocket technologies, filing patents,[7] trade secrets, and invention disclosures. After several years as a control systems designer and analyst, he transferred to the propulsion department where he became a ballistician and ordnance engineer.[1][full citation needed]
Bruno served as program manager for Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) Rocket Propulsion, and was vice president and general manager of the FBM and intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) programs.[8][9] During his tenure at Lockheed, Bruno held roles as the vice president of engineering for Lockheed Martin Space and as vice president and program manager of the Terminal High Area Altitude Defense System (THAAD) missile defense interceptor.[10] Bruno’s last position at Lockheed before joining ULA was as vice president and general manager of Strategic and Missile Defense Systems.[10]
United Launch Alliance
In August 2014, Bruno left Lockheed Martin to become the president and chief executive officer of United Launch Alliance (ULA),[11] a joint venture owned by Boeing and Lockheed Martin. Bruno's appointment came as ULA was facing increased competition from newer entrants into the space launch industry, especially from SpaceX with their Falcon 9 rocket, in addition to political pressure from the United States Congress to stop purchasing the Russian-made RD-180 rocket engines for use on the Atlas V. Under Bruno's leadership, ULA responded to these issues by announcing Vulcan, a new rocket building on the technology of Atlas V and Delta IV, using the BE-4 engine developed by Blue Origin.
Books
Templar Organization, The Management of Warrior Monasticism, by S. T. Bruno ISBN978-1587216213
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