Behind Boeing

Boeing has an illustrious history with the space program. It was Boeing who, decades ago, built and tested the Saturn V rocket for NASA, the rocket that would be powerful enough to launch the first men to the Moon. Today, Boeing has been hard at work developing the CST-100 Starliner, which will be critical in transporting humans to and from the International Space Station, and the Space Launch System, the next rocket in line to take man and woman to the Moon.

In honor of Women’s History Month, Boeing provided bios on a handful of the incredible women working for both the Starliner and the SLS, who are going above and beyond the call of duty in the name of advancing human space exploration.

Rebecca Regan is the communications manager for Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner, which is on the cusp of returning human spaceflight launch and landing capabilities to NASA and the United States. She joined Boeing as a communications specialist in early 2016 and helped build the communications team that is responsible for sharing the incredible Boeing Space and Launch story with the world. Prior to that, Regan was an integral member of the NASA Commercial Crew Program communications team at Kennedy Space Center. She worked media briefings, news conferences, live television coverage and social media outreach for flights, tests and program activities. She holds a bachelor’s degree in radio-television broadcasting from the University of Central Florida and a master’s degree in global strategic communications from the University of Florida. She and her husband, Adam, are excited to be raising their two children, Natalie (8) and Colton (5), in the same Titusville neighborhood that they grew up in, where you can step outside your front door and watch humanity leave Earth on amazing journeys to space.

Amanda Ireland is a Space Coast transplant from Philadelphia, PA where she graduated from Drexel University with both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in mechanical engineering. She’s currently putting her education to great use on Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner program as the launch campaign manager, where she coordinates all spacecraft and rocket integration milestones ahead of liftoff. Among many other activities, she is responsible for making sure the reusable Starliner spacecraft gets safely out of the factory, transported to the launch site and stacked on top of its rocket. She also oversees the plan to keep astronauts safe and healthy ahead of their flight by coordinating Boeing’s Health Stabilization plan which outlines the necessary procedures for how individuals interact with flight crews during the final two weeks before launch. Then, when launch day finally arrives, Ireland sits on console as a liaison between spacecraft, launch vehicle and crew transportation teams to ensure necessary information flows quickly and seamlessly. Ireland is passionate about STEM education and has represented the Boeing company during local outreach events hosted on the Space Coast for students and industry professionals. When not preparing for upcoming launch campaigns, Ireland is making time to earn her pilot’s license.

Liz Poul has been a Space Coast resident for 20 years. She began her career working on the shuttle program’s solid rocket boosters and has dreamed of returning humans to space from American soil ever since the program ended in 2011. Now, she’s about to get her chance working as an electrical systems engineer on Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner which is preparing to launch astronauts as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. As a member of the spacecraft test team, she is responsible for ensuring powered systems and data sensors are functioning properly ahead of major integrated test campaigns, such as environmental qualification, pad abort and orbital flight. She even has a role on console during Starliner launches inside Boeing’s brand-new flight control center at Kennedy Space Center, and co-owns one of the community’s local treasures, Canaveral Meats and Deli, which has been in business for over 30 years.

When not working inside Starliner’s production factory or running the family store, Poul and her husband Roman enjoy setting sail aboard Port Canaveral’s incredible cruise lines with their two lovely girls, Vicki (26) and Sabina (14).

Kristine Ramos is a critical member of the Space Launch System (SLS) Program at Kennedy Space Center. For the past three years, Ramos has been following the world’s largest rocket across the country, which is being built today for NASA by Boeing in order to take humans back to the Moon and on to Mars. She first supported the rocket’s design as an engineer in Huntsville, AL, then as a task lead for its production at the Michoud Assembly Facility in Louisiana. Soon Kristine will support the rocket’s Green Run Test as a readiness lead at Stennis Space Center in Mississippi when the rocket’s engines will be fired for the first time. She looks forward to joining the rest of her Space Coast teammates later this year in the lead up to launch of the first Artemis mission. Before joining the SLS team, Ramos held various engineering roles on both the Space Shuttle and International Space Station programs, as well as numerous defense aircraft including the Chinook, Apache and Blackhawk helicopters. When she is not playing rocket scientist, she is an avid baker, and she enjoys running obstacle course races and kickboxing.

Rosie Gonzalez has been a leader in the aerospace industry for over 24 years. She currently manages the software team that is developing launch vehicle control systems to test NASA’s deep space rocket during its upcoming hot fire called the Green Run Test at Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. Before that, she was a technical human factors lead at NASA’s Usability Testing and Analysis Facility providing support on how to improve work and life in space by assessing Space Shuttle and International Space Station hardware. With a degree in industrial engineering specializing in ergonomics and safety, Gonzalez has even worked as a human factors consultant outside of Boeing developing training workshops and job task analyses to keep people safe. Gonzalez enjoys exploring the area’s theme parks with her husband Moises, and joyful children, Leo (7) and Alessandra (6), especially Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Walt Disney World.

Karoline Pearce began working for Boeing on the International Space Station (ISS) Program at the Kennedy Space Center as an engineer when she was just 19 years old. She now leads various projects including the management of on-orbit astronaut emergency masks and portable breathing apparatuses. She also develops test procedures, schematics and fabrication plans for flight hardware flown on ISS resupply missions. She’s responsible for creating design solutions to address any nonconforming ISS parts and systems, as well as participating in design reviews with the project and engineering teams. The Florida Institute of Technology graduate is an avid pilot and enjoys flying airplanes in her free time. When not in the air, Pearce is likely spending quality time with her beagle puppy appropriately named Snoopy and German shepherd with a “call sign” of Charlie.