John Hanley Announced As The New Chair of UKspace

John Hanley was last week announced as the new Chair of UKspace, the trade association of the British space industry, taking over from Nick Shave after just over two years in the post, as is customary in the organisation.

John holds the role of Senior Vice President of Secure and Assured Space Solutions for CGI in the UK and Australia.

In a statement issued upon taking over the role, he challenged the UK’s authorities and industry to “double-down on our support for the space economy.”

He went on to say that: “Space has always inspired young people – and our growing sector is turning that inspiration into well-paid jobs. There has never been a more important time than now to double-down on our support for the British space economy – to address global challenges and provide a route to future prosperity for UK businesses and citizens.

“Over the next two years, as we move towards the next Comprehensive Spending Review, I want the UK’s space sector to continue punching above its weight, and I am looking forward to UKspace playing its role in strengthening partnerships and driving our future success. To do this, we must support the UK’s space industry – from start-ups to multi-nationals – to deliver services that enable innovation across many British industries, enhance our critical national infrastructure, protect our national security and provide many more breakthroughs in scientific understanding.”

Doug Liddle, the organisation’s CEO of In-Space Missions will act as his Vice-Chair, and as happened with Nick Shave, and in line with tradition, the Vice-Chair will take on the role in two years time after John Hanley moves on.

UKspace’s President, Will Whitehorn, also had his say on the appointment: “The space industry globally is now crucial to the survival of our species on this planet as our population heads above 9 billion and faces the dual issues of climate change and resources pressure. John has a wealth of experience in the industry, is immensely respected and has identified the particular challenges and opportunities to the UK space industry in supporting the country and our global customer base. I know he will do a superb job tackling those issues on our behalf. He will be working alongside a great team including our new President Dr Alice Bunn OBE, whom I will be handing over the role of President in September. I wish them both well in these exciting but also difficult times for the industry.”

Who is John Hanley?

After two years as the Vice-Chair it is the customary time for Hanley to step up to Chair.

As explained above, he holds a role as Senior Vice President and lead for the Secure and Assured Space Solutions business area at CGI UK. 

John has served as part of CGI’s business unit which has been heavily involved with the Space, Defence, and Intelligence communities in the UK for over 40 years now.

Hanley studied for an MSc in Geodesy and Geomatics at the University of New Brunswick, Canada before embarking on his 22-year career mainly working in the European space sector, where he led strategic sales teams. Now, he leads the business area, managing customers upstream and downstream within the Space sector and related industries.

John is already Chair of the UK’s Space Skills Advisory Panel as he looks to help to increase the visibility of the Space workforce and increase the career prospects for those looking to move into the industry, and those studying in related fields, ensuring that space organisations and companies in the UK continue to have access to some of the smartest and best candidates for their space roles as the industry grows.