Vinay Goyal is a Principal Director within the Vehicle Systems Division, where he leads a team of 120 experts delivering innovative, high-quality technical solutions to NASA, the United States Space Force, the National Reconnaissance Office, and other government and commercial organizations. He provides strategic leadership, develops technical investment strategies, and ensures responsive, collaborative support across critical aerospace programs.
From 2022 to 2025, Goyal served as an Aerospace Technical Fellow in Enterprise Systems Engineering, advancing machine learning applications for launch systems and pioneering novel acquisition and mission assurance processes. He led the development or modernization of over 20 aerospace standards and best practice documents, including NASA SP-8007 (Buckling of Thin-Walled Circular Cylinders) and NASA Handbook 5010 (Fracture Control), while contributing to space mobility and logistics, in-space servicing, assembly and manufacturing, and human spaceflight systems. As Principal Engineer in 2020, he developed the foundational framework for launch vehicle reusability assessments, spearheaded mission assurance process evolution, and led multiple NASA-funded technical activities. Previously, as Systems Director, he directed the Falcon and OmegA structures assessment teams and supported the first successful National Security Space Launch certification for Falcon. Throughout his career, he has made significant contributions to launch vehicles, spacecraft, re-entry systems, and hypersonic technologies.
Goyal serves as Deputy Technical Fellow for the NASA Engineering Safety Center Structures discipline and holds joint faculty appointments at UCLA and USC in their Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Departments. He is also Deputy Director of the AIAA Aerospace Design Structures Group. His achievements include the NASA Exceptional Public Service Medal (2022), AIAA Fellow and ASME Fellow designations, over 100 technical publications, and three co-authored engineering textbooks. He has served on multiple Independent Review Boards for NASA, Space Systems Command, and the FAA. Goyal holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico and a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
