Press Release

Nanoracks Names Amela Wilson Chief Executive Officer, Jeffrey Manber to Join Voyager Space

By SpaceRef Editor
November 11, 2021
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WASHINGTON, DC – November 11, 2021 – Nanoracks, a Voyager Space Company, today announced the appointment of Dr. Amela Wilson as Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Former CEO and Co-Founder Jeffrey Manber will join Voyager Space as President of International and Space Stations and will remain Chairman of the Board at Nanoracks. 

Nanoracks is the world’s leading provider of commercial space services and continues to push this boundary, most recently announcing alongside Voyager Space and Lockheed Martin the intent to develop Starlab, the first-ever free flying commercial space station. Amela will oversee Nanoracks and its spinoffs in this pursuit, uniting decades of strategic planning, business development and project management experience. 

“Nanoracks has always stayed one step ahead of what’s possible in commercial space, and I see an opportunity to further solidify this position,” said Matthew Kuta, President and COO of Voyager Space. “Today, we sit on the precipice of the next frontier of space exploration, and I believe Amela’s proven experience and deft organizational leadership is what’s required now to propel Nanoracks to the next level.”

“In my new role, I will support both Voyager and Nanoracks in bringing commercially viable space platforms into the LEO ecosystem, including human habitats like Starlab and autonomous systems we call Outposts,” said Jeffrey Manber, President of International and Space Stations at Voyager Space. “In addition, I will be dedicated to enabling new international opportunities and spheres of collaboration across the Voyager portfolio. International space collaboration is critical to realizing a true commercial in-space marketplace and a focus area I have been passionate about for decades.”

Amela most recently served as Senior Vice President and General Manager at Mercury Systems, where she oversaw five company sites and over 500 employees during her tenure. She was also the Vice President and General Manager – Surveillance at FLIR Systems and the Vice President and General Manager – Sensors and Fire Control Systems Solutions at Elbit Systems of America.

“I’m thrilled to be joining the team at Nanoracks at such a pivotal point in the company’s trajectory,” said Dr. Amela Wilson, Chief Executive Officer of Nanoracks. “Under Jeffrey’s leadership, Nanoracks has broken barriers and forged the path of commercial space access in a way no other organization has achieved. I’m eager to hit the ground running and elevate the hard work already being done by this accomplished organization.”

Amela’s appointment continues a sequence of impressive personnel appointments for Nanoracks. Recently, Nanoracks announced Marshall Smith, former Deputy Associate Administrator (DAA) for NASA’s Systems Engineering and Integration (SE&I), Human Exploration and Operations (HEO) joining the company as Senior Vice President of Commercial Space Systems in its newly launched Huntsville, Alabama office.

Nanoracks, a Voyager Space Company, is the world’s leading commercial space services provider. Nanoracks owns and operates private hardware on the International Space Station and has launched over 1,300 research experiments, deployed over 300 small satellites, and installed the Bishop Airlock. Today, Nanoracks leverages over a decade of experience to develop new commercial space systems in direct response to customer needs. These space systems include converting commercial launch vehicle upper stages into functional secondary platforms, building new habitable space stations, supplying payload and crew airlock systems and services infrastructure, and more. Follow @Nanoracks on Twitter to learn more or visit https://nanoracks.com. 

About Voyager Space 

Voyager Space is a global leader in space exploration. Voyager’s long-term mission is to create a vertically integrated, publicly traded NewSpace company capable of delivering any space mission humans can conceive. The firm’s first-in-industry model is uniquely tailored to support the growth needs of commercial space companies by replacing traditional private capital models with a longer-term approach that provides permanent capital. Voyager is led by founders and space industry veterans Dylan Taylor and Matthew Kuta, along with  the  Board of Directors which  includes National Security Expert and four-star Air Force General William Shelton; leading institutional investor Gabe Finke; world-leading planetary scientist, Dr. Alan Stern; noted public company director and former U.S. undersecretary of technology Dr. Cheryl Shavers; experienced technology executive, board director, and financial leader, Marian Joh; and former undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, Ellen Lord. To learn more about Voyager Space Inc., please visit: https://voyagerspace.com/

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements.” All statements, other than statements of historical fact, including those with respect to Voyager Space Holdings, Inc.’s (the “Company’s”) mission statement and growth strategy, are “forward-looking statements.”  Although the Company’s management believes that such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot guarantee that such expectations are, or will be, correct. These forward-looking statements involve many risks and uncertainties, which could cause the Company’s future results to differ materially from those anticipated.  Potential risks and uncertainties include, among others, general economic conditions and conditions affecting the industries in which the Company operates; the uncertainty of regulatory requirements and approvals; and the ability to obtain necessary financing on acceptable terms or at all. Readers should not place any undue reliance on forward-looking statements since they involve these known and unknown uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond the Company’s control and which could, and likely will, materially affect actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. Any forward-looking statement reflects the Company’s current views with respect to future events and is subject to these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to operations, results of operations, growth strategy and liquidity. The Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future.

SpaceRef staff editor.