GDS 2026 Speakers
This year Defence Leaders are proud to launch Global Defence Satellite, bringing together military professionals, policy makers and industry experts to advance the conversation in national space defence strategy. The inaugural edition looks to drive resilient and secure space operations worldwide with a focus on LEO, MEO and GEO satellites and their application in conjunction with armed forces on land, sea or in the skies.
From programme directors and procurement officials to heads of space research, our speakers deliver critical perspectives across the full spectrum of national defence relating to developing assets in space.
The agenda for the 2026 edition is now available for download via the button below
2026 Speaker line-up
Dinesh Rempling
Director a.i Capability Transformation Division, Frontex
Major General (Ret’d) Robin Anderton-Brown
Former Director of Capability, UK MOD – Strategic Command
Bruce Lacy
Program manager – National Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT), UK Department for Science, Innovation& Technology
Colonel Grzegorz Matyja
Space Operations Center Commander and Deputy Chief Geospatial Intelligence & Satellite ServicesAgency (ARGUS), Polish Ministry of National Defence
Major General Mariano Rodriguez Llerena
Commander of the Space & Cyber Command, Peruvian Air Force / MoD
Dr. Mohamed Al’Aseeri
CEO, Bahrain Space Agency
Professor Fabrizio Berizzi
Challenge Manager Resilient space operations, NATO DIANA
Aysha Alharam
Chief Satellite Design Department, Bahrain Space Agency
Brigadier General Adam Sowa
Rector’s Space Advisor, Polish Military University of Technology
Peter Erni
Head of Space Research, Armasuisse
Wilmar Ender
Lead Aerospace Systems Engineer, Austrian MoD CyberSecurity Centre
Aija Kalnaja
Deputy Director Space Capabilities, FRONTEX
Commander Dr.-Ing. Martin Hellman
Head of Team Space, German Cyber and Information Domain Service Headquarters
Mehmet Nefes
Director TUBITAK UZAY Space Technologies Research Institute, TUBITAK (Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye)
Brigadier General Jacob Middleton
Commanding General, US Space Forces Europe and Africa
Air Commodore Chris Robson
Commander Space Forces Group/Joint Force Space Component Commander, Australian Defence Force – Space Forces Group
Jamie Du Brunner
Skynet 6 Deputy Director, UK MoD – National Armaments
Colonel Pedro de Silva Costa
Chief of Space Centre, Portuguese Air Force
Simon Swift
Chairman, Digital Intermediate Frequency Interoperability (DIFI) Consortium
David Phillips
Head of Systems, Strategic Programme Lines and Technology Department, European Space Agency
Lieutenant Colonel Petra Wijnja
Lead Space Warfare & Expertise, Netherlands Air and Space Warfare Centre