AeroVironment Appoints Robert Smith as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Effective April 13, 2026

Key Highlights

• Robert Smith has been appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of AeroVironment Inc., effective April 13, 2026.
• Dr. Smith, age 53, succeeds Brad Truesdell, who will transition from an advisory role through April 30, 2026, to a consulting role starting May 1, 2026, to assist with the transition.
• Prior to joining AeroVironment, Dr. Smith served as Vice President, Radio Frequency Solutions of Raytheon Company from February 2024 to March 2026, and Vice President, Mission Suites of Raytheon from September 2023 to February 2024.
• His previous roles include Senior Vice President and General Manager, Integrated Defense Solutions of Cobham Advanced Electronic Solutions (March 2022-September 2023) and President, Government Operations of BWX Technologies, Inc. (January 2021-January 2022).
• Dr. Smith also held multiple executive positions at Lockheed Martin Corp., including Vice President and General Manager of Radar and Sensor Systems, Vice President of C4ISR, and Vice President of Space and Cyber.
• He holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Maryland Baltimore County, a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Auburn University, and an MBA from Johns Hopkins University.