Dawn Aerospace has promoted Johann Joubert to the role of Head of In-Space Propulsion.

Dawn Aerospace, a space transportation company based in NZ, the Netherlands, and the United States, is on a mission to provide sustainable and scalable ways to access and move around in space. The company is the fastest growing supplier of green propulsion for satellites in the world and has an ever-growing amount of hardware in space having flown on Falcon 9, Soyuz and Vega rockets. Dawn is also building a spaceplane – a launch vehicle that combines the performance of a rocket with the rapid reusability and fleet economics of an aircraft.

Joubert joined Dawn with an impressive background in engineering and space. After several design engineer roles developing hardware and embedded systems in the mining & military industries in South Africa, he got his start in the space industry with Space Advisory Company as a technical advisor to companies building satellites. He went on to become the first South African employee of New Space Systems where he oversaw engineering and helped lead the company’s growth for seven years.

Joubert joined Dawn in August last year as a Project Manager role but was recently promoted to the Head of In-Space Propulsion, a 50-person team that was, until recently, led by CEO, Stefan Powell.

Joubert said, “It’s great to be in a company that has a massive vision. We’re doing revolutionary things.  I’m excited to be leading a team that is disrupting the hydrazine space industry and enabling our clients to offer a complete solution rather than just saying here are the parts, away you go. I think it’s a massive game changer.”

Dawns’ systems use readily available fuels, nitrous oxide and propylene, which provide safer handling and huge cost savings compared to traditional hydrazine propulsion.

CEO, Stefan Powell said, “I’m super excited to have someone as experienced and capable as Johann to hand the reins to. It’s a key role. In-space propulsion is currently the financial backbone of Dawn. Johan impressed us with not only his technical knowledge but also his leadership skills.”

Dawn Aerospace also made headlines earlier this year when they flew their spaceplane technology demonstrator, the Mk-II Aurora, under rocket-power for the first time. 

Read more about Johann’s career journey here.