GUNTERSVILLE, AL, May 12, 2026 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Richard M. Lusk has been included in Marquis Who's Who. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.

Mr. Lusk has established a distinguished career at the intersection of military operations, intelligence, unmanned systems, sensing technologies, data systems and strategic decision-making. He is the founder and principal of Oculus Deus LLC, a strategic advisory firm based in Guntersville, Alabama, focused on unmanned systems, Counter-UAS architecture, sensing and ISR integration, critical infrastructure protection and national security technology.

Through Oculus Deus LLC, Mr. Lusk helps senior leaders understand and respond to the risks posed by low-cost drones, autonomous systems and emerging threats to critical infrastructure. His work emphasizes integrated sensing, layered defense, operational decision support and institutional preparedness in an era when small unmanned aircraft systems have become both powerful tools and serious security challenges.

Mr. Lusk's current work builds upon more than four decades of experience across military service, federal research, private enterprise and defense technology. He previously spent more than a decade at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where he founded and directed the Unmanned Aerial Systems Research Center and served as group leader for Data Systems Sciences and Engineering. In that role, he helped advance the practical adoption of unmanned aircraft systems for government, scientific, industrial and critical infrastructure applications.

During his tenure, he co-authored a seminal handbook with Bill Monday that became an early definitive guide for the electric utility industry on the safe and effective use of small unmanned aircraft systems. That work helped inform the adoption of drones for utility inspections and other industrial missions at a time when many organizations were still learning how to integrate unmanned aircraft into complex operating environments.

Mr. Lusk is also recognized internationally for his contributions to unmanned systems and Counter-UAS strategy, having participated in global standards discussions and addressed professional audiences across government, industry, academia and public safety. His expertise has positioned him as a respected voice on the operational, technical and strategic implications of unmanned systems in civilian and defense environments.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Lusk served as an officer in the United States Marine Corps from 1983 to 1995. As a Marine Corps captain assigned to Atlantic Command, he helped pioneer one of the Department of Defense's earliest client-server imagery systems, enabling the exchange, annotation and shared use of satellite imagery products across military organizations. This early work in digital intelligence, imagery dissemination and joint operational support foreshadowed his later focus on data-driven operations and technology-enabled security.

Following his military service, Mr. Lusk continued to work across the technology, telecommunications and national security sectors. He served as a global marketing group and technology program manager at MCI in Atlanta during a period of rapid telecommunications expansion, later founded MediaLake LLC, and subsequently led the JDES Laboratory at United States Joint Forces Command in Suffolk, Virginia, supporting work related to joint deployment, employment and sustainment.

From 2023 to 2024, Mr. Lusk served as national sales and marketing director at HYCO Alabama LLC, where he applied his technical and strategic background to industrial business development. His private-sector experience has helped shape his understanding of how emerging technologies move from concept to adoption, and how government, industry and infrastructure operators can align around practical mission needs.

Mr. Lusk's academic background includes a Master of Business Administration in technology marketing from the Questrom School of Business at Boston University and a Bachelor of Science in communications from the University of Idaho. He has also completed advanced coursework through the Advanced Management Program at National Defense University and terrorism studies at the University of St Andrews. Additionally, he is a graduate of Command and Staff College and Amphibious Warfare School at Marine Corps University.

Complementing his education, Mr. Lusk holds a remote pilot certificate with a small unmanned aircraft systems rating from the Federal Aviation Administration and is certified as an enterprise architect through The FEAC Institute. He maintains professional affiliations with organizations including the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International, the International Organization for Standardization, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion.

In addition to his professional work, Mr. Lusk is an author and strategic thinker on unmanned systems and Counter-UAS defense. His published and professional writing reflects his long-standing focus on helping leaders understand emerging technology before it becomes a crisis. His recent work has focused on Counter-UAS doctrine, critical infrastructure protection and more effective defenses against rapidly evolving aerial threats.

Mr. Lusk attributes his success to hard work, persistence, intellectual curiosity, service and a clear understanding of the responsibilities that come with technical leadership. His early exposure to experimental unmanned systems as a Marine Corps officer helped shape a career devoted to recognizing emerging technologies early and translating them into practical operational value.

Beyond his professional pursuits, Mr. Lusk remains committed to civic service and community engagement. For nearly five decades, he has supported St. Joseph's Indian School in North Dakota as part of a family tradition spanning generations. He has also volunteered with robotics initiatives and provided pro bono support related to search-and-rescue operations, observing how unmanned aircraft systems are transforming the ability to locate missing persons and support responders in difficult terrain.

Born in Riverside, California, Mr. Lusk values spending time with his family and enjoys farming as a personal pursuit. Looking ahead, he intends to continue developing and advancing Counter-UAS concepts, doctrine and institutional protections designed to safeguard critical infrastructure, military facilities and civilian populations from the misuse of unmanned and autonomous systems.

About Marquis Who's Who®:
Since 1899, when A. N. Marquis printed the First Edition of Who's Who in America®, Marquis Who's Who® has chronicled the lives of the most accomplished individuals and innovators from every significant field of endeavor, including politics, business, medicine, law, education, art, religion and entertainment. The suite of Marquis® publications, including Who's Who in America® and Who's Who in the World®, remains an essential biographical source for thousands of researchers, journalists, librarians and executive search firms around the globe. Marquis® publications can be viewed at the official Marquis Who's Who® website, www.marquiswhoswho.com.

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