Draft:Helmut Hans Portmann

Helmut Hans Portmann an American electrical and systems engineer, inventor, and novelist, best known for his thrillers based on his real-life adventures in the offshore oil fields, secret nuclear missile systems, and unmanned systems development.

Early Life and Education
Portmann was born on November 3, 1954, in Ennetbaden, Switzerland, to Irmgard Leonore Portmann, originally German and his father Helmut. The family moved to the United States at a young age and grew up in Stone Mountain, Georgia. Portmann earned his B.S.E.E.Electrical Engineering degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology and later obtained his graduate degree in underwater acoustics from Johns Hopkins University.

Career
Portmann's early career was marked by work in the defense industry, where he analyzed and mitigated detectable acoustic and non-acoustic signatures of US submarines. He later became a sonar analyst at the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Panama City, Florida. In 2009, Portmann was selected to become a member of the Senior Executive Service (SES) and director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA National Data Buoy Center.

Works
Portmann has published several novels, including:


 * Adios El Jefe : Cold War thriller that follows five young Cuban boys who seek vengeance against Fidel Castro's revolutionaries. The novel is inspired by Portmann's experiences launching Pershing 1a missiles into the Atlantic Ocean from Cape Canaveral in the 1980s.

Personal Life
Portmann has been married twice, first to Dona K. Aaron, an artist, and then to Julie Ann Cowen. He has one son, Alex Hans Portmann, with his second wife.

Achievements and Awards
Portmann's achievements include:


 * 2004 AUVSI (Association of Unmanned Vehicles International) Pioneer Award


 * 2003 NSWC Panama City Commanding Officer/Executive Director 2003 Guy C. Dilworth Award.


 * Portmann led a team that investigating novel submarine acoustic signature patterns documented in a highly classified report.
 * Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) Government Contracts : Portmann was responsible for multiple SBIR  government contracts while employed at Applied Mathematics, Inc. in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Technical Publications and Patents

 * 2014 Counter-vandalism at NDBC


 * 2001 Shaping the Future of Naval Warfare with Unmanned Systems (CSS/TR-01/09).