Sandhoo, who was deputy director, will now oversee the strategic direction, acquisitions and operations of the agency’s flagship Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA) program.
Tournear, who became Space Development Agency’s (SDA) second director in 2019, was instrumental in establishing the agency as an independent organisation under the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, before its transfer to the US Space Force in 2022. He guided the agency through major acquisition milestones and rapid program expansion, positioning it to begin delivering its first tranche of PWSA satellites designed to deter conflict and boost front-line capabilities.
Michael Eppolito, SDA’s chief program officer since 2024, will step in as acting deputy director. Eppolito, who joined the agency in 2020, previously served as Battle Management cell chief and oversaw delivery of the Tranche 0 satellite constellation.
“Derek’s vision wasn’t just courageous; it was transformative,” Sandhoo said. “His commitment to innovation and spiral development has reshaped how quickly we can deliver critical space capabilities. With Mike Eppolito stepping up, we’re ready to roll out Tranche 1 of PWSA, bringing direct support to our warfighters on the front line.”
Sandhoo brings decades of experience across the military, government and private sector. His career includes senior roles at Quantum Space, Northrop Grumman, the US Naval Research Laboratory and the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity. He has also held academic appointments, including the Heinlein chair in Astronautics at the US Naval Academy.
A veteran of both the US Navy and Marine Corps with more than 36 years’ service, Sandhoo most recently acted as National Reconnaissance Office liaison to the Security Assistance Group-Ukraine while serving as senior space scientist at the Defense Innovation Unit.
He holds multiple advanced degrees across engineering, space systems and national security, and is an MIT Seminar XXI fellow.