Cross-Section of Commercial Space Leaders to Meet in San Jose; Ergen to Receive Top Honor

In a first-of-its-kind gathering this
October, leaders from a breadth of commercial space-based services and
business will share discussions on their impact and place in the US and global
economies.

At the AIAA/Aviation Week Space Business Conference & Expo, being
held in San Jose, California from October 30 to November 1, 2000, these
leaders will share their concerns and focus on their common obstacles at what
is being sold as the conference for entrepreneurs.

“Space technologies are now so deeply imbedded into the nation’s economy
that it’s hard to see them, but if you access the Internet, watch TV, bank at
an ATM, or just call your mom, you’re using a space business,” says Courtney
Stadd, President, Pixsell Inc., a web-based spatial data management and GIS
company.
“But, even more important than using space as a conduit of
information, is using space as a source of data and information on what’s
happening here on Earth and combining it with other satellite and information
technologies to revolutionize how we do just about everything.”

What makes this meeting-of-the-minds so unique is the breadth of space
industry sectors being represented: remote sensing satellite imagery, global
positioning systems, Internet-via-satellite services, direct-to-home
transmission, and the nascent space entertainment sector. Also, for the first
time, the discussion will focus on the business risks associated with flying
spacecraft in the hostile orbital environment and threats from the Sun.

In what may be the key moment of the entire event, Charlie Ergen, the
famed founder and CEO of Echostar — darling to both its customers and
especially Wall Street — will receive the Aviation Week Space Business
Executive of the Year Award at a special banquet in his honor.
Ergen, who
started Echostar in 1980, is the leader of the fastest growing direct
broadcast television companies in the United States.

“Charlie Ergen is one of the two key leaders of today’s U.S. Direct
Broadcast Satellite (DBS) industry.
That industry is, in turn, is leading the
worldwide telecommunications revolution. In short, his leadership is helping
to create a metamorphosis in the way the world acquires its news, information
and entertainment,” notes industry analyst Jimmy Schaeffler.

Confirmed participants for the seminal event include:

• Ambassador L. Craig Johnstone, Senior VP, US Chamber of Commerce
  
• Paul Graziani, President and CEO, Analytical Graphics, Inc.
  
• Mike Griffin, CEO and President, Magellan Corp.
  
• Herbert F. Satterlee III, President & CEO, Earthwatch
  
• Frank Dibello, Managing Director, SpaceVest
  
• Dr. Ali Atia, Vice President, Orbital Sciences
  
• Gene Colabatistto, President, Spot Image
  
• Dr. James J. Spilker, Jr., former Chairman, Stanford Telecom
  
• David Puente, VP Business Development, Loral Cyberstar
  
• David Finkelstein, Senior VP Marketing & Business Development,
  Skybridge
  
• James Muncy, Principal, PollSpace
  
• Dr. Sheila A. Harrison, Chairman & CEO, Space Media, Inc.
  
• David Gump, President. Luna Corp
  
• Carissa Christensen, Division Director-Technology Management, Futron
  Corporation
  
• J. Armand Musey, Principal Senior Satellite Analyst, Banc of America
  Securities
  
• Carolina Blake, Chief Commercial Technology Office, NASA Ames
  
• Scott Seaton, Director Space Technology, SRI International
  
• Bill Elkins, Chief Technology Officer, Cool Systems Inc.
  
• Yosuo Otaki, Secretary General, Asia Pacific Satellite Communications
  Council
  
• David L. Cromer, Vice President-Standards, AIAA
  
• John Christensen, Pd.D, Consultant, J. Christensen Consultants
  

The AIAA/Aviation Week Space Business Conference, October 30 to November
1, 2000 in San Jose, California is open to all registrants and is presented by
Aviation Week and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
Registrations are being taken by AIAA at 1-800-NEW-AIAA.

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