b'36 Partner News Autumn 2021CorporateIntroducing Thales Chief Executive and Chair: Alex CresswellAlex Cresswell was appointed ChiefSpace Museum in Washington and beingthe use of autonomous systems in the UK Executive and Chair of Thales in the UKutterly transfixed by itit remains one of mymilitary. When Watchkeeper made its first in 2020, following a 35-year internationalfavourite places in the world. civil authorised flight, the signature taking career within the aerospace and defenceresponsibility for flight UAV001 was mine, a sectors. His business achievements led toThe museum is home to the Wrightdream for a childhood aero-modeller.his investiture as a Lgion dhonneur inFlyer, the first powered, heavier-than-air 2017. Here, Alex reflects on his experiencesmachine to achieve controlled sustainedWhere do you see the future of with global tech giant Thales and on theflight in 1903. We understand you have apassenger flight and the development of future of engineering and next generationpersonal connection to this milestone? autonomous technology?technologies:On 17 December in North Carolina, OrvilleSustainability is quite rightly growing in Your career has taken you from the UK toWright made history with that first flightimportance and I think were now going to France and backwhat inspired you toof 12-seconds and 37-metres. In a previoussee a much-changed travel rationale with become an engineer? Thales role, I led the team that won the MODa higher emphasis on environmental issues. programme to develop Watchkeeper, theThis could include greater use of smaller, but Having spent the last decade in France andnew tactical unmanned air system for themore efficient aircraft and the increased use seen at first-hand how they view and respectBritish Army. That proposal was deliveredof autonomy in the cockpit to aid the pilot. I engineers in society, I think its critical weon 17 December 2003, 100 years to the dayalso see the greater use of AI and technology focus on our future talent pool here in theafter Wright first flew, paving the way forto improve the green footprint. By combining UK. Engineering and scientific careers also have to be appealing to everyone, regardless of class or background as its such a critical profession. We cannot keep losing the best of the best engineers to careers in banking and other sectors.Like the rest of industry, we in Thales want to see talented, commercially astute and innovative engineers at the heart of what we do. We would like to see greater diversity to widen and deepen the pool from which we draw, but this starts much earlier in the educational system. I think STEM ambassadors also have a massive role to play. You can only be inspired by what you see at an early ageand I speak from experience.I wanted to become an engineer because of my early fascination with aerospace and space. I always remember as a boy going with my grandmother to the National Air &'