Airbus reaches beyond the skies and into space, and the technologies it builds and develops, keeps vital global communications that we all depend upon, working.

Colin Paynter is the Managing Director of Airbus Defence and Space, based in the UK. Colin heads up a workforce of more than four thousand people, most of whom are involved in building communications and observation satellites. Airbus is by far the biggest player in this field in the UK. Customers for these solutions range from telecommunications companies to the British Armed Forces, and are used for a variety of functions, including monitoring the effects of climate changes and providing extra capacity for mobile phones. Airbus Defence and Space is also developing a new Mars Rover that is on schedule to be launched to the Red Planet (Mars) in the coming few years. Its goal will be to provide new scientific insights.

Colin who has worked in his current position for 17 years, is about to retire from Airbus, and in this episode, he speaks to Martin Aguera about his work in the past, present developments, as well as his hopes for Airbus in the space segment moving forward.

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