Tiphaine Louradour Talks Leaving ILS for Spaceflight CEO Role

Tiphaine Louradour

Tiphaine Louradour is taking the helm at rideshare provider Spaceflight as the company’s new CEO. Spaceflight announced the news on Thursday, after Louradour announced her departure from ILS International Launch Services (ILS) earlier this week.

Louradour succeeds Curt Blake, a founding executive of Spacelight and longtime CEO of the company. Blake will support the leadership transition, then consult for Spaceflight owner Mitsui & Co.’s space group, as well as provide legal and strategic counsel to various companies in the industry.

The last two years at ILS were extremely challenging with Russia’s war in Ukraine. Now, Louradour faces an exciting new challenge, albeit completely different from ILS. Spaceflight has made its name in the rideshare arena over the last 10 years as one of the pioneers. In this interview, Louradour talks about the opportunities ahead at Spaceflight, what ‘Spaceflight 2.0’ might look like, and why she decided to take this role.

VIA SATELLITE: Congratulations on the new role at Spaceflight. Why was the time right for you to take on this role? 

Louradour: The company is at an inflection point and my experience and skills can foster Spaceflight’s growth. Spaceflight has a reputation as a company that drives innovation and that was really exciting to me. As you know, Spaceflight is the rideshare launch provider of choice, establishing the market. I think we’re quick to forget that 10 years ago rideshare wasn’t a preferred method to get to space and now it is standard.

Spaceflight established itself as the leader and is now pushing a new frontier with in-space services. That is where I see the company today, and why I think I am a strong fit for the role. I bring strategic leadership and sales expertise which are assets when working with new, innovative solutions.

VIA SATELLITE: On the face of it, the two companies could not be more different, what do you see as the keys to be successful at Spaceflight?

Louradour:  Spaceflight is at a unique point with a focus on its Sherpa OTV [orbital transfer vehicle] program and developing a new market with in-space services. My experience leading teams, developing and defining clear roadmaps, analyzing market data, and understanding customers’ needs and how to support them are all very applicable to this role.

VIA SATELLITE: What did you learn from your experience at ILS? How can those experiences help you be successful at Spaceflight?

Louradour: The situations at the two companies may be different, but the skills and methods needed to successfully lead are similar. I have a broad knowledge base and experience helping companies transition into the next phase of their lifecycle and I think there is an opportunity to help Spaceflight evolve into its next phase. I can understand the pieces of the puzzle and make them fit. And identify that missing piece to understand how to fill the gap. So, the roles are different, but the approach is similar. It is about seeing the opportunity, defining your objective, and figuring out how you are going to get there. 

VIA SATELLITE: It must have been a tough experience at ILS given the geopolitics surrounding Russian launch vehicles. Did it feel somewhat of a no-win situation to be its president during this time?

Louradour: COVID-19 started within 24 hours of starting my role at ILS, so that was my first challenge. At the time, Khrunichev was launching successfully, and ILS had an opportunity to improve communications with customers and streamline its operations. I saw a lot of opportunity for the company and chances for it to get back on track. We were successful in driving sales and then the conflict happened. Unfortunately, it was a situation that was completely out of our control, but ILS is adapting until such time it can re-engage in the market.

VIA SATELLITE: Curt Blake had been in this role at Spaceflight for over 10 years. How do you assess following someone who has been synonymous with Spaceflight? 

Louradour: I have big shoes to fill. Curt and I have had the chance to get to know each other through industry events over the years and we bring different experiences and backgrounds to the table. We’re working closely together now to ensure a smooth transition. 

VIA SATELLITE: Spaceflight was part of 10 launches last year. Do you think the company will launch at that level over the next couple of years? 

Louradour: As you know, launch schedules shift, but we’re on track to maintain a similar cadence this coming year. In addition to our traditional rideshare launches, we will be looking to develop and add in-space services to support customer missions.

With the Sherpa program, we can enable more capabilities in space. We can get you there. We can get you to a variety of orbits and assist with plane changes for your constellations. We can support tech demonstrations in a cost-effective manner. These are all elements that we are excited to explore and we are eager to work with customers to understand how these can best meet their needs. Additionally, one of Spaceflight’s best assets is its extensive launch vehicle portfolio. That brings value to the customer, especially those with small satellites and large constellations.

VIA SATELLITE: It sounds like a big change to the business model.

Louradour: There is a component of change to it, but the addition of Sherpa is a natural extension of what Spaceflight has been doing to date. If you think about the rideshare model, it starts as a product with the available capacity. But Spaceflight has expertly developed and added services to compliment the offering, including integration and mission management to improve the customer experience. A similar approach is happening with Sherpa. The OTV is an innovative and impressive piece of hardware and we’re exploring services we can offer by leveraging this new technology.

VIA SATELLITE: As you know better than anyone, the launch market is uber competitive right now. Why do you think Spaceflight can be successful in this space? 

Louradour: The company is augmenting its current business model. We will still provide rideshare launches, but we will also build off that service. The needs of the market are growing and evolving. When I was at ULA 10 years ago, small satellites couldn’t find a ride to space, they couldn’t buy a full rocket. Rideshare enabled the smallsat industry to flourish. I believe in-orbit services are in a similar position now as rideshare was 10 years ago. It is a burgeoning industry and Spaceflight has the right DNA to service it. Finally, Spaceflight is ahead of the game. We have five Sherpas on orbit already and we’re excited to continue developing this program.

VIA SATELLITE: What do you hope to achieve in the first 12 months of the role? 

Louradour: It would be to continue to be the rideshare leader in the market and continue to be a strong partner to our customers. I’d like to focus on optimizing our assets to enable customer mission success. It really does feel like the perfect alignment of things I have experienced and done at ILS and ULA. Having that strong knowledge of the launch market will be incredibly useful. It felt like the right time. It is a great opportunity, great timing.