Tony Frazier, executive vice president and general manager of public sector Earth intelligence at Maxar Technologies, said acquisition contracts for the private sector have served as a key tool for the U.S. government to help supplement Ukrainian defense capabilities in the wake of Russia’s invasion, Signal Magazine reported Thursday.
He and James Doggett, vice president of mission assurance at HawkEye 360, noted the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s increased efforts to utilize commercial imagery for Ukraine reflect the important role industry is playing in crisis response missions.
“Having contract vehicles in place to support solutions from demonstration to prototype to production has put systems into the hands of Ukraine end users quickly,” Frazier, a five-time Wash100 Award winner, said Thursday during a panel discussion.
The Maxar executive added the ongoing conflict in Europe became an “accelerant” for space-based support missions.