Virgin Orbit Names Jim Simpson its New Chief Strategy Officer

Virgin Orbit recently announced who will be taking the position of its new Chief Strategy Officer — Jim Simpson. This California-based space company is now getting ready for its second launch demonstration and, soon enough, hopes to offer commercial launch services. With Jim Simpson, Virgin Orbit hopes to achieve all set milestones because the company’s new CSO is known for his strong focus on meeting both government and commercial clients’ needs. 

Jim Simpson as Virgin Orbit Chief Strategy Officer

New Virgin Orbit Chief Strategy Officer already has a very impressive career in the space niche. Jim Simpson has worked on a number of satellite launch projects. He collaborated with the government, established companies and startups. Before Virgin Orbit, Jim worked as a CEO at Saturn Satellite Networks. His primary focus was Geostationary Earth Orbit launches. Other notable positions include CEO of Asia Broadcast Satellite and head of strategy at Aerojet Rocketdyne, Boeing Network, and Space Systems. 

Dan Hart, Virgin Orbit CEO, is especially excited to work with Jim Simpson. He claims that the new Virgin Orbit Chief Strategy Officer has massive experience with small satellite launch solutions and running space companies in general. Hart justly believes that Simpson has helped many emerging aerospace companies pave their way to successful careers in the industry. So, he should now use this impressive experience to help Virgin Orbit reach new heights. 

Before taking the place of Virgin Orbit Chief Strategy Officer, Jim Simpson has been on the company board of directors. His Virgin Orbit experience started in May 2019, so now Jim has all the necessary knowledge and experience to help the company prepare for its first commercial launches. 

Jim is equally excited about his new position. He claims to be very impressed by the company’s potential. He notes that Virgin’s LauncherOne offers incredible flexibility and mobility. As a reminder, LauncherOne is designed for horizontal launches, and the cargo takes off when the launcher is already in the air. This technology is not as widespread as vertical satellite launches. It is also more affordable and has promising potential for the small satellite industry as a whole. Jim Simpson, newest Virgin Orbit Chief Strategy Officer, believes that this tech will unlock a whole new range of opportunities for commercial and government clients, which is why he is so excited to help the company move towards its dream missions.