Paul Febvre

CTO, Satellite Applications Catapult

Paul is Chief Technology Officer at the Satellite Applications Catapult, responsible for establishing a future vision for the sector and directing the technology strategy for the Catapult. Paul leads a small team of solutions architects and technologists that work across the Catapult to provide industry support in the creation and realisation of technologically innovative solutions to real world challenges. Prior to joining the Catapult, Paul was Design Authority for the Inmarsat BGAN system and responsible for managing Inmarsat’s activities under the European Space Agency (ESA) ARTES (Advanced Research Telecommunications Systems) programme. This included the Alphasat-Extension programme to integrate advanced technologies into the Inmarsat systems, and the Iris programme under SESAR (Single European Skies Advanced Research) joint undertaking to develop the next generation of aviation safety services for air traffic management communications systems over Europe. Paul previously worked for many years at BT Research Laboratories in Ipswich, developing mobile and satellite radio communications systems, advanced modulation and coding, data transmission protocols, and information security architectures.

Peter Kibutu

5G NTN Market lead, TTP plc

Peter has been working in the cellular industry for over 15 years, specialising in modem system architecture and physical layer development. Before joining TTP, Peter worked in the development of 2G/3G/4G wireless modem products and small-cell base station projects for a number of leading cellular equipment vendors. At TTP Peter has worked with a wide range of clients in the satellite and cellular communication domains, specialising in end-to-end system engineering, modem system development and advising on commercial aspects. Currently Peter is the TTP technical lead for 5G/6G activities and represents the company in range of industry bodies including 3GPP and UKTIN.

: http://www.ttp.com
: @https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-kibutu-4a78531

Walter Everetts

Vice President, Space and Ground Services, Iridium

Walt Everetts is Vice President, Space and Ground Services for Iridium Communications Inc, where he is responsible for overseeing and monitoring the Iridium space-based network operations, the teleport network of antennas around the world, the Gateways and the development & deployment of upgrades to support future system enhancements. His responsibilities encompass all aspects of constellation and ground management, as well as space/ground engineering supporting software enhancements to fully serve the end user communications needs and expected availability.

Mr. Everetts started his career working in the aerospace industry with specific responsibilities in commercial communication satellite integration, testing, and launching. In 1996, he joined the satellite communications division at Motorola as the manufacturing manager responsible for the delivery and deployment of the Iridium program spacecraft constellation. After completion of the original Iridium satellites, Mr. Everetts took on a new program management position at Motorola, where he was assigned to projects in more than 40 countries and a multitude of different product lines in the telecommunication industry. In February 2008, Mr. Everetts rejoined Iridium as the Space Systems Operations Director. In 2013, he was promoted to VP, Space Operations and Engineering. In 2021, he was promoted to his current role of Space and Ground Services 

Mr. Everetts holds a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering from the Pennsylvania State University.

Yasrine Ibnyahya

Senior Director of the Advanced Concepts and Technologies, Inmarsat

With over 17-years in the space industry, Yasrine Ibnyahya has spent her career to date fostering innovation and championing entrepreneurial initiatives. Today, she is the head of the engineering department in charge of Advanced Concepts and Technologies within Viasat’s Global Space Network division.

Yasrine is the creator of various services and products that have enabled the company to enter new markets. Alongside building a large portfolio of mission concepts, she led and won various innovation programmes funded by large institutions such as NASA, UKSA, ESA or JAXA. 

In the past, Yasrine managed the expansion of the company’s L-band infrastructure on the ground and across various orbits, led the development of the company’s cutting-edge Aviation and Maritime Safety infrastructures, and was part of the creation of the European Aviation Network, further demonstrating her expertise and commitment to technological advancement within the satcom industry.

Yasrine honed her skills at Airbus Company's STTL, overseeing the development and manufacturing of their first geostationary satellite. Prior to that, her tenure at CLS America, saw her taking charge of Maritime terminal development for the US fisheries market at their US office in Washington DC.

In terms of academic accomplishments in the field, Yasrine is a proud alumnus of the University of Cambridge, UK, where she completed her 2 years Executive MBA in 2018. Moreover, she holds two Masters of Science degrees - one from the ENST (Ecole Nationale Superieure des Telecommunications) in France, and another in Communication Systems and Signal Processing from the University of Bristol, UK.

As an ambassador for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Yasrine founded the Inmarsat Women’s Network and is a regular advocate for STEM education

Dr Fionagh Thomson

Senior Research Fellow, Durham University

Fionagh is a visual ethnographer, human geographer, ecologist and ethicist. She is a research nomad and moves disciplines. Currently, she is a senior research fellow in the Centre for Extragalactic Astronomy (Durham university), where she studies the darker side of satellites, dark skies, dark matter – and the geopolitical nature of space policy.  Fieldwork locations include Papua New Guinean rainforests, Outer Hebridean islands, UK Accident & Emergency departments, mountaintop astronomical observatories and an earth observation start-up.