About Us
From curious kids to inspired professionals
We started as curious kids obsessed with how machines worked, and grew into maintainers forged in the sub-zero blasts and scorching heat of the flight line. The moment of change didn't happen in a corporate boardroom—it happened on the ramp, watching decades of unwritten, field-tested troubleshooting genius walk off the base in the mind of a retiring Chief, leaving the next generation to fight complex repairs alone. Tempest Axiom was born out of a refusal to let that human mastery vanish. We are transforming aviation sustainment by capturing the unwritten wisdom forged under extreme operational realities and delivering it directly back to the technician at the airframe—ensuring no maintainer ever stands in the dark, and the craft never loses its memory.
Our Story
We recognized our calling in high-stakes operational environments, working alongside the professionals who quietly keep military aviation flying. We saw firsthand that the true backbone of national defense isn't just stealth or software—it’s the unyielding dedication of the flight-line maintainer. Tempest Axiom was founded on a clear conviction: to serve those who serve, elevate the craft of sustainment, and secure the maintainer’s rightful stake in the future of defense technology.
The Team
Richard Contreras
Founder, Business Analyst, chill guy
As a former U.S. Air Force aircraft maintainer, I lived the high-stakes reality of keeping complex airframes mission-ready. Driven to solve the knowledge loss I saw on the ramp, I earned my B.S. in Entrepreneurship at UNLV and M.S. in Business Analytics at UNR to found Tempest Axiom.
We build tools like The Apex Mechanic to empower frontline technicians with the collective, queryable intelligence of their peers. An immense love for the maintainer community and the profession gets me through the grind of building a startup from the ground up. Beyond grateful for the journey. Let’s cook!
Our partners and mentors
