David Broadbent spent over two decades at Raytheon, working across various divisions and sharpening his expertise in defense, space, intelligence and commercial cyber in a slew of leadership positions. Toward the end of his run at that company, Broadbent developed a strong interest in the space environment, and was appointed president of space systems. He is keenly interested in how the space domain is complicated by matters of defense and intelligence.
In late 2023, an opportunity arose at Intelsat, which Broadbent happily accepted. The executive told us that “what really drew me in was the potential to help the company reinvent itself — to pivot away from being purely a megahertz provider in GEO, and move toward delivering truly integrated, defense-grade communications systems.”
At Intelsat, he’s taking everything he learned in his 20-plus years with Raytheon and applying it in a different context, one that’s more commercial and more entrepreneurial, but one that’s aligned with his skillset and the strategic direction the company demands.
Broadbent generously gave some time to GovCon Wire so we could learn about what it means to work in what the executive calls a “highly adversarial” space environment, the major trends shaping the space industry and much more.
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GovCon Wire: What’s the most impactful trend you’re currently seeing in the GovCon market? How are you seeing GovCon organizations respond to that trend?
David Broadbent: I’d like to frame the answer through the lens of the space side of the house, since Intelsat is fundamentally a space business.
The most important trend we’re seeing is the increasing need for secure and resilient communication systems. A lot of that is being addressed through the development of interoperable, multi-mesh networks that are self-healing. I’ll share a few of the technologies we’re investing in to support that.
First is multi-orbit capability. For government users, resilience is critical. We use geosynchronous orbit capabilities, along with medium Earth orbit and low Earth orbit networks, to provide both resilience and global coverage. Government customers don’t want to rely on a single orbital solution — they need multiple, redundant circuits to ensure assured service.
We approach it from an orbit-agnostic standpoint. While we have deep experience in GEO, we’re also working closely with our nongeostationary orbit and LEO partners. And once our combination with SES is complete in the coming months, we’ll be a tri-orbit business with MEO capabilities as well. So we start with the customer’s mission and mix and match to deliver the optimal multi-orbit solution.
Second, we’re focused on hybrid terrestrial and satellite networks. Think of these as integrated 5G-enabled networks that connect satellite and ground systems. This has huge potential in denied or degraded environments — places where cell coverage doesn’t exist. It’s especially valuable for supporting Joint All-Domain Command and Control, or JADC2, where the goal is to connect all assets and personnel across every domain. To do that, you need a true mesh network with connectivity across and within orbits, as well as down to the ground. We see 5G as a real game-changer in enabling real-time data sharing across those domains.
Third, we’re investing heavily in software-defined networks and virtualization. Historically, much of what we’ve tried to do with self-healing, multi-orbit, multi-band networks has been constrained by hardware limitations — proprietary modems or embedded software that made interoperability difficult. So we’re pushing to virtualize more of that hardware and create common standards across waveforms. That opens the door to more flexible, integrated and scalable network architectures.
Another area we’re exploring is Earth observation and space situational awareness, especially through our partnership with BlackSky. We’re working on inter-satellite data links to expedite data flow — both within and across orbits, and down to the ground. There’s significant growth potential here, particularly in the GEO belt, where there’s a lot of space but relatively few assets — and many of those are aging or overtasked. We’re looking at proliferated options to bolster awareness and ensure better support for national security and defense customers.
The punchline is: the Department of Defense is making smart moves by supporting this broader ecosystem of new space capabilities and companies that are driving innovation. But there’s still a gap between traditional primes like Raytheon, Boeing and Lockheed, and the newer, more agile space players. The new space companies have great people and innovation, but often lack on-orbit experience. Meanwhile, the traditional players bring deep spaceflight credibility but tend to be slower and more expensive.
At Intelsat, we see ourselves as uniquely positioned to bridge that gap. With over 60 years of on-orbit experience, we’re agile enough to move at the speed of relevance, partner with emerging companies and also integrate with traditional primes. That puts us in a strong position to deliver the best solutions to our DOD, intelligence and broader government customers.
GCW: If we’re losing ground in any critical national defense priorities, how are we working now to catch up?
Broadbent: I’d say one of the most critical areas where we need to catch up is in bringing more speed and agility into our defense and intelligence acquisition processes.
The DOD, in particular, just isn’t structured to move at the pace the threat is evolving—especially in the space domain. However, there are efforts underway. I think the Space Force is on the right track with its commercial strategy and initiatives like the Commercial Augmentation Space Reserve, or CASR. Those are well-intentioned and pointed in the right direction—but progress has been slow.
To really catch up, we need to focus on changes at the policy level. And more importantly, we have to translate the aspirational rhetoric we hear at senior levels of DOD and the intelligence community into action at the acquisition level. That means operationalizing the vision—embedding it into the buying commands and reinvigorating a culture that moves at commercial speed. Or frankly, at the speed of the threat.
The good news is we’ve got a lot of new entrants in commercial space, and that presents a real opportunity. The DOD is making strides in partnering with those companies, but we need more of that. That’s how we bring in the speed, agility, and investment we’ll need to stay ahead in this rapidly evolving environment.
GCW: What are our biggest threats in space, and how are we addressing those threats to maintain our space superiority, especially during this era of increasing competition?
Broadbent: We’ve moved from what I would say was a largely benign space environment—frankly the one I grew up with for most of my career—into what I’d now call a highly adversarial environment. That shift definitely changes the strategic posture of the business in terms of the technology we need to invest in to stay relevant and protect our assets.
This shift to adversarial space brings a range of threats—counter-space weapons, anti-satellite weapons, cyber, directed energy, various spoofing activities. We’ve got to make sure we have the right systems in place to defend our assets and architectures, and we need to do that as a nation and at a pace that makes a difference.
For us, it means taking a leadership role in making sure our capabilities are hardened from a cyber perspective and have the resilience to operate in denied environments, deal with jamming and electronic warfare, and more. We need to place just as much emphasis on those design characteristics as we’ve traditionally placed on functionality, especially now in what I would call a highly adversarial environment.
Bottom line—we’ve got to invest in making sure our systems are resilient, secure and hardened against new and emerging threats.
GCW: How do you think the proliferation of commercial entrants in space is changing the domain? What trends or shifts can we expect to see from that going forward?
Broadbent: I see it as a really positive thing. These commercial entrants are bringing a massive amount of innovation, speed and agility when it comes to developing, testing and fielding capabilities on a much faster cycle than we’ve seen in the past. That’s the biggest shift—speed and agility. It’s a game changer.
We’re also seeing a shift to fixed-price contracts instead of long-term cost-plus arrangements, and we’re seeing more competition, which I think is a great dynamic. All of this creates an environment not just of increased competition but of enhanced capability—whether in satellite communications, earth observation or space situational awareness. These innovations are happening faster than ever.
There’s no question the commercial space environment has been massively disrupted over the past three years. I see that as a good thing. It’s pushing the traditional primes and satellite manufacturers to think differently, innovate, invest and even consolidate where it makes sense to keep the playing field competitive.
That said, I think it’s important to strike a balance—embrace the innovation and speed of new space while still maintaining a healthy, competitive environment. There’s plenty of demand in space. No one provider has the perfect solution. So we’ve got to embrace the benefits of new space and drive that pace of change in the acquisition process. At the same time, we’ve got to maintain a diverse supplier base, avoid vendor lock and keep the competitive landscape strong.
There’s more than enough opportunity out there for everyone to thrive.
