President and
CEO
Senior Vice President, Space Initiatives
Senior Vice President, Defense Networks
Senior Vice President, Strategic Development
Senior Vice President, Engineering
Senior Vice President, Operations
David Fields is the President and CEO of SES Space & Defense – SES’s wholly-owned subsidiary – which focuses on delivering satellite-based ICT solutions to the U.S. Government. David was also appointed Global Head of Space & Defense in April 2023, responsible for SES’s Government business on a worldwide basis.
With a proven track record in innovation and growing government business, David joined the SES Group in 2022 from Leonardo’s DRS Global Enterprise Solutions, where he was the Senior Vice President and General Manager for six years.
Born in the U.S., David has over 30 years’ experience in the satellite communications and Information Technology (IT) industry where he successfully combined his engineering background with a strong business acumen and served in a variety of executive management roles with Contel, GTE/Verizon, Dyncorp International, SES Americom Government Services and Verestar.
Jim Hooper is the Senior Vice President for Space Initiatives at SES Space & Defense. Jim is responsible for developing and deploying solutions for new satellite programs, hosted payloads, and delivery of satellite capacity for both U.S. Government customers and industry partners.
Prior to working at SES Space & Defense, Jim was the Vice President, Global Government Sales at SES Networks, where he was responsible for leading a team supporting defense, security, humanitarian, and institutional customers worldwide.
In 2016, Jim was stationed overseas with assignment to the SES Singapore office, where he was responsible for developing SES Networks’ strategic customers in the Asia- Pacific region, preparing and executing strategies for aeronautical, maritime, international government, and other commercial markets.
Prior to transferring to Singapore, Jim first joined SES Space & Defense in 2010 as the Vice President, Business Development, where he managed marketing, sales, business development, capture, and proposal writing activities for the U.S. Government. Hooper transformed SES Space & Defense’s approach to business development and pipeline management, and by doing so the organization won over $100M in new contract awards annually during his tenure.
Ben Pigsley is the Senior Vice President for Defense Networks at SES Space & Defense. Ben has over 30 years’ experience in tactical and strategic long- haul communications and an extensive background with large-scale Department of Defense tactical networks.
Prior to joining SES Space & Defense, Ben served at DRS Global Enterprise Solutions (GES) for 15 years most recently as the Vice President of Growth and Strategy.
Ben’s background includes 21 years of service in the United States Army. He served as Satellite Manager for the Defense Information Systems Agency – Europe, Satellite Controller for the United States Army Space and Missile Defense Command, and Lead Planner and Chief of Current Operations for the Joint Communications Support Element. Ben’s military background also includes multiple deployments with the United States Special Operations Forces, where he served two tours in combat areas of operation.
Jay Icard is the Senior Vice President for Strategic Development at SES Space & Defense. Jay is a seasoned leader with over 30 years of industry experience in government and enterprise telecommunications and 15+ years in commercial satellite integration.
Jay comes to SES Space & Defense most recently serving as the Chief Executive Officer at XTAR, where he was responsible for the overall direction, strategy, and business operations. While at XTAR, Jay combined his technical background, business acumen and operational know-how to transform the company into a trusted source for advancing industry innovation within the “Fighting SATCOM” vision of the U.S. Space Force.
Prior to XTAR, Jay held profit and loss (P&L) management and business development leadership roles with TeleCommunication Systems Inc. (TCS) and Comtech. At TCS and Comtech, he was responsible for Strategic Business Development for major U.S. Government programs and held leadership positions in Cyber Security, Satellite Managed Services and Professional Services. Prior to Comtech and TCS, Jay worked for Oracle, MCI and in the Department of Defense acquisition community.
Nitin Bhat is the Senior Vice President of Engineering at SES Space & Defense. Nitin has over 30 years’ experience designing and developing wireless, terrestrial, Information Technology (IT), and cyber solutions for the U.S government and military.
In addition, Nitin has an extensive technical background in designing end-to-end solutions for mission-critical, large-scale Department of Defense tactical networks.
Nitin manages a diverse and skilled team of engineers focused on aerospace, terrestrial, cyber, networking, advanced technologies, Network Operations and Security Center (GNOSC), and software development.
Prior to joining SES Space & Defense, Nitin served at DRS Global Enterprise Solutions (GES) for nine years most recently as Vice President, Engineering and Technical Operations.
Scott Galus is the Senior Vice President of Operations and currently the interim Senior Vice President of Finance at SES Space & Defense. Scott is a seasoned leader with more than 20 years of federal contracting sector experience.
Scott began supporting government programs when he joined SAIC in 1997 and later served as a Project Control Manager for the Athens C41 program, an IT security contract with the Government of Greece.
Since joining SES Space & Defense in 2009, Scott has led both finance and sales departments. As Senior Vice President of Operations, Scott provides strategic and operational leadership overseeing the organization’s operating divisions.