Telesat hires retired Canadian Brig. Gen. G. Michael Adamson. Photo: LinkedIn

Telesat hired a retired Canadian brigadier general to lead its ​​government go-to-market and business development strategy for the Lightspeed Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) network. The Canadian operator announced retired Brig. Gen. G. Michael Adamson as the company’s new senior director of Defense Strategy and Business Development on Wednesday. 

Adamson was the inaugural Commander of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) 3 Canadian Space Division and the Joint Force Space Component Commander, where he worked with Canadian and allied partner stakeholders to operationalize the space domain and determine CAF space operations requirements. 

He is tasked with cultivating relationships with both government and industry partners and making sure the strategy and service offerings for the LEO constellation meet government satcom needs for Canada and allied nations. 

 “I look forward to building trusted partnerships with government and defense organizations to advance the adoption of strategic communication systems for North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) modernization efforts to bolster defense for Canada and its allies,” Adamson commented. 

Telesat recently finalized its Lightspeed funding agreements with the government of Canada and the government of Quebec, and now has the financing sources in place to fund the LEO network.