AeroVironment announces the Milancy Harris Appointment as the company’s new Vice President and Chief Security Officer (CSO). Harris now drives the enterprise security strategy for the technology provider, which supplies critical capabilities to the U.S. government and allies. This high-profile move significantly bolsters AeroVironment’s national security leadership team by integrating decades of public sector experience directly into its executive structure.
Harris brings extensive and high-level experience from the defense and intelligence community directly to her new role. She most recently served as the Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security at the Department of Defense (DoD), where she managed complex security and intelligence portfolios. Before this, Harris actively shaped policy, serving as a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense and directing policymaking for irregular warfare and counterterrorism. Her deep government roots trace back to her time as an intelligence analyst with the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA).
Strengthening Enterprise Security
As VP and CSO, Harris takes responsibility for overseeing the comprehensive protection of AeroVironment’s vital personnel, technologies, and programs supporting the warfighter mission. Her leadership will focus on ensuring maximum operational resilience while empowering rapid innovation across the organization.
Before her most recent roles at the Pentagon, Harris held senior positions across the intelligence apparatus, including crucial work at the National Counterterrorism Center, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), and the National Security Council (NSC). She also previously held private-sector experience as the first chief of staff for Meta’s Oversight Board, focusing on governance and operational design. This blend of public and private sector acumen makes the Milancy Harris Appointment particularly strategic.
Wahid Nawabi, AeroVironment Chairman, President, and CEO, emphasized Harris’s crucial impact, stating that her leadership “will ensure AV operates with the highest standards of trust and resilience while empowering our teams to innovate boldly and deliver critical capabilities for those we serve.”
Harris expressed enthusiasm for her new position, noting her commitment to the mission. She looks forward to “building a security organization that enables the company to grow, innovate, and serve with excellence,” confirming her dedication to protecting the people, programs, and technologies essential to the company’s delivery of capabilities to government partners.
