Satnews Daily
November 30th, 2017

Polaris Alpha Names Two Former Military Cyber Command and Reconnaissance Appointments 


Two newly appointed members of Polaris Alpha's board of advisors will be enriching the company with their expertise. The appointees are two high profile former military and government leaders to its board of advisors:  Lieutenant General (Ret.) James K. “Kevin” McLaughlin and Major General (Ret.) Robert H. Latiff. 

Dr. Latiff was formerly the Director, Advanced Systems and Technology and Deputy Director for Systems Engineering, National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), Chantilly, Virginia.  General McLaughlin was formerly the deputy commander of the U.S. Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM), Fort Meade, Maryland.  


Lieutenant General (Ret.)
James K. “Kevin” McLaughlin

General McLaughlin and Dr. Latiff bring a broad range of expertise in both the military sector and academia to Polaris Alpha specifically in the emerging domains of Space and Cyber.  Dr. Latiff served in both the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force, and possesses a Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame. General McLaughlin brings decades of military experience and a deep understanding of government and military cyber networks and space operations to the advisory board.

In his most recent position at the NRO, Dr. Latiff managed the agency’s advanced systems development and oversaw the agency’s systems engineering operations. He also previously served as the Vice Commander, USAF Electronic Systems Center; Commander of the NORAD Cheyenne Mountain Operations Center; and Program Director for the Air Force E-8 JSTARS surveillance aircraft.  Dr. Latiff has served on the staffs of Headquarters U.S. Air Force and the Secretary of the Air Force.  He is a widely published author, and sought-after speaker and instructor on future warfare technologies and their implications.

Dr. Latiff said that Polaris Alpha is a great fit for him in areas he is passionate about, and that the company and its team are doing a wonderful job combining the agility and excellence of a smaller company with the breadth and depth of a larger organization. The military and intelligence communities need innovative, yet cost effective solutions more so today than ever. He is truly excited to be a part of the team.

General McLaughlin served most recently as deputy commander of USCYBERCOM.  The agency directs the cyber forces that defend the Defense Department’s information networks, providing full-spectrum cyberspace options to military plans and operations, and, when directed, defends U.S. critical infrastructure from cyber-attacks of significant consequence.


Major General (Ret.)
Robert H. Latiff

Prior to his most recent position at USCYBERCOM, General McLaughlin served as commander, 24th Air Force and Commander, Air Forces Cyber, Joint Base San Antonio - Lackland, Texas.  During his career, which began in 1983, General McLaughlin has commanded at virtually all levels of the Air Force, and has served on the staffs at major command headquarters, combatant command headquarters, the National Reconnaissance Office, Air Force headquarters, and the Office of the Secretary of Defense.  He is very unique in his deep understanding of both the Space and Cyber emerging warfighter domains.

General McLaughlin stated that he is very excited to join such a dynamic company that is truly doing some innovative things in areas where they are most needed, and he looks forward to working with the team at Polaris Alpha as it works to become a leader in delivering next generation Cyber and Space technologies.

Peter Cannito, CEO, Polaris Alpha noted that they are extremely fortunate to have Dr. Latiff and General McLaughlin join the advisory board, and not only are they top military strategists, but they are also technology experts, who will be able to advise Polaris Alpha in many critical areas of the company, as they establish themselves as thought leaders in the emerging domains of Space and Cyber.  Their guidance will be tremendously valuable.

The Polaris Alpha advisory board provides the company’s executive leadership with strategic guidance and advice as it serves its customers in the government, military, and Intelligence Community.