John Celli, president and Chief Operating Officer of Space Systems/Loral, is a satellite industry veteran with nearly 30 years of experience. He previously served as executive vice president of the company with responsibility for all aspects of operations and, prior to that, was senior vice president of engineering, manufacturing, and test operations. As executive vice president, Mr. Celli led the organization responsible for the development, manufacturing, testing, and procurement of all satellite units and subsystems, and he also oversaw procurement, information systems, and the facilities organizations.

From 1996 to 2001, Mr. Celli was executive director of SS/L's Intelsat IX program, where he led the successful development and delivery of seven advanced multi-frequency communication satellites. From 1981 to 1996 he held various engineering and management positions at SS/L, with increasing management responsibility.

Before joining SS/L in 1981, Mr. Celli held design and management positions for space products and ground systems at Alenia S.P.A. (Rome, Italy) for six years, while supporting academic developments at the Faculty of Engineering, University of Rome.

Mr. Celli holds a master's degrees in mechanical engineering from the University of Rome, Italy.