High-flyer: Clive Higgins joined the company as an engineering apprentice and worked his way up to landing the top UK job

Clive Higgins, the chief executive and chairman of the defence giant Leonardo UK, faces some of the greatest challenges of his 30-year career.

Defence Secretary John Healey last week spoke of the possible cancellation of military contracts, even as the heads of MI6 and the CIA warned of the ‘reckless campaign of sabotage’ waged by Russia across Europe.

At the same time, Sir Richard Moore of MI6 and Bill Burns of the CIA said that the UK and the US faced an ‘unprecedented array of threats’, including the ‘resurgent’ danger from the Islamic State.

Two months ago, Healey said the Government would launch ‘a root and branch’ defence review, which is due to announce its findings next summer.

But before that date, Higgins, 46, can expect to learn whether Leonardo will win the contract to replace the RAF’s fleet of ageing Puma helicopters, or whether the programme will be cut back or scrapped.

A fortnight ago, Leonardo which makes Merlin and Wildcat helicopters and is the second largest supplier of defence equipment to the Ministry of Defence after BAE Systems, became the sole bidder.

The competing contractors, Airbus and Lockheed, pulled out, sensing that the costs of building the replacement helicopters could exceed the gains from the project.

Even before the Election, Higgins, who is down to earth, but eloquent, was campaigning to shift opinion on the necessity of investing in defence, combating the ‘woke’ view that it is not ethical.

He speaks from the heart not only on behalf of the company, which he joined as a 16-year-old apprentice, but also in the interest of the security of the realm.

He says: ‘There has been a massive push to invest money in carbon neutral stocks. Which is understandable. But what Ukraine has done is shown that you can’t have some of those things unless you have security of defence.’

After Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Europe’s top seven defence companies, including BAE Systems, Leonardo and Saab, have received new orders worth $300billion (£225billion).

This was driven by a 7 per cent surge in global spending to a record $2.4trillion in 2023, the steepest annual rise in 15 years.

‘The invasion has changed the priorities of the investment community and Government. We need to secure ourselves,’ Higgins says.

Nevertheless, he argues that we have been naive compared with some of our allies such as the US.

‘In the US look how it supports its veterans and defence industry. There is national recognition of how important it is,’ he says.

‘I don’t think we have that same level in the UK. Yes, people support the Armed Forces but maybe defence companies are just seen as other businesses. We have spent time working with stakeholders so that people are aware of the value.’

But defence companies and the Government have still had to work hard to convince investors that the sector was something to invest in, despite the big rise in expenditure by governments across the globe.

Higgins says that Labour has been ‘very active, willing to listen and understand – wanting to engage on defence and employment issues’. He is lending his support to the Government’s attempt to forge closer ties with Brussels. The UK administration and the governments of EU states must all work to make defence budgets stretch further.

Leonardo UK is a division of the £10billion Italian Leonardo group, which is listed on the Milan stock exchange. Roberto Cingolani, chief executive of the group has said that one of the lessons of the invasion of Ukraine is that ‘no country can be on its own’.

Leonardo UK employs 8,500 staff. Its biggest location is Yeovil in Somerset, on the site of what used to be Westland Helicopters.

Think of Somerset and the first thought is likely to be cheddar cheese, rolling hills, cider and Glastonbury. But it is helicopters that are the county’s most high value exports, contributing hundreds of millions of pounds to the local economy every year.

Westland’s history dates back to the world wars, when more than 2,000 Spitfires (and the Naval version, Seafires) were produced.

The company was famously at the centre of row in 1986 between Margaret Thatcher and her Defence Secretary Sir Michael Heseltine, which led to his resignation.

Heseltine favoured a European buyout, but Thatcher won out when Westland merged with America’s Sikorsky group.

It then passed through the hands of several owners, ending up with Finmeccanica of Italy, which in 2016 changed its name to Leonardo, after the artist and designer.

Higgins grew up near the factory in Yeovil and could hear the helicopters fly around the town.

‘Every day you would see something flying around, the noise resides across the town,’ he says.

He went to school locally, leaving at 16 and joining Westland Helicopters as a mechanical engineering apprentice. He moved into human resources, before becoming director of government affairs in 2019, and landing the top UK job in 2023.

Higgins clearly loves the cut and thrust of the industry, quipping that it really is all ‘boys toys’.

He’s lean and fit and sporty – a running enthusiast and keen cricketer, bowling medium pace.

Not naturally an early riser, Higgins, who is married with no children, says being based in Yeovil sometimes means waking up at the crack of dawn is inevitable.

‘If I have to get to London then I’m up at 5am for the train – that’s just how it is,’ he says affably.

The company’s biggest projects include providing helicopters for the Polish air force as well as the Global Combat Air Programme, working alongside BAE Systems. This is a initiative led by the UK, Japan and Italy to jointly develop a sixth-generation stealth fighter.

It aims to replace the Eurofighter Typhoon in service with both the Royal Air Force and the Italian Air Force, and the Mitsubishi F-2 in service with the Japan Air Self-Defence Force.

Unveiled in December last year, GCAP is one of the most ambitious military programmes, aimed at expanding each nation’s defence capabilities to address rising threats from Russia and China. It merges Japan’s F-X programme with the UK and Italy’s Tempest project and aims to deliver a supersonic jet in roughly half the time – and at far lower cost.

On own his ambition, Higgins says he’s committed to Leonardo, despite the company’s top brass – Cingolani and chairman Stefano Pontecorvo – residing in Rome.

Higgins spent three years at the firm’s Italian helicopter headquarters in Cascina Costa between 2014 to 2017 – which will have left him in good stead should he wish to climb further up the ladder.

He adds: ‘That experience in Italy puts people in a good position for careers. The north is akin to parts of Germany – it’s one of the most economically profitable parts of Europe – engineering, fashion and pharmaceuticals but the further south you are there are fewer industrial centres.’

Higgins has the same faith in the North of England. Leonardo has opened a research site in Newcastle, creating 200 highly skilled jobs. He says: ‘Go to areas in the North-East – there’s a passion, there’s a vibrancy, there’s talent and we’ve got to tap into that.’

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By Zac Campbell

Published: 08:34 BST, 14 September 2024 | Updated: 10:41 BST, 14 September 2024

A former fish and chip shop worker who plied his trade in the industry for five years has revealed the one item he would never order. 

Jordan Luxford, who is now the owner of A-Star Waste Management in Sussex, worked at several fish and chip shops on the south coast and even served as a cook specialising in the British dish at the Wimbledon tennis championships in 2019. 

While fish and chips is considered to be the national dish of choice for millions of Brits across the UK, Mr Luxford explained that items are often all deep-fried in the same batch of vegetable oil – from fish, chips and sausages to Mars bars. 

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He said: ‘Most people wouldn’t know that after we cook battered products in our oil we would follow it with a batch of chips. 

A former fish and chip shop worker who plied his trade in the industry for five years has revealed the one item he would never order from a chippy (File image)

‘The chips help to clean the oil of the smaller batter particles that do not get removed by sieving the oil,’ in an interview with The Express. 

As many items are cooked in the same batch of oil, Jordan said he would avoid ordering a beef burger from your local chip shop. 

The former chip shop worker remarked: ‘I would never order a fried beef burger! If you want a decent burger get it from a shop with a hot plate to cook it on.

‘If you want a freshly cooked item go for something that isn’t in the glass top under the lights but we would cook anything fresh if a customer asked anyway.

‘Fried chocolate bars have always been popular too. We would usually cook them for free alongside an order and as we wouldn’t have the chocolate bars in stock, the customer would be asked to bring them with them and we would cook them at the same time as the rest of their order.’

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Jordan also noted another aspect of the fish and chip trade that might surprise a lot of people – the amount of preparation required for a busy day of service. 

He added: ‘The amount of preparation time needed to get everything ready before opening was a huge surprise!

‘It takes hours to cut a Friday night’s fish and even more hours to peel, inspect and cut 20 bags of potatoes. Prep for a Friday night, opening at 5.30pm would start at 10am.’ 

It comes after new figures revealed that a typical portion of fish and chips has risen to nearly £10 after the cost of the classic British dish soared by 50%. 

Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show the dramatic cost increase in some of the nation’s most popular takeaways

Data has shown the alarming price rise of one of the nation’s favourite takeaway choices. 

Whether you enjoy wrapped in newspaper overlooking the sea on a sunny summer’s evening or at home on a cold winter night, the average price for a chippy tea has skyrocketed to over £10, according to new data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). 

The ONS said that the estimated average price for a takeaway portion of fish and chips was £9.88 in July this year –  a hike of 52% compared with £6.48 in July 2019.

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It means the cost of a fish supper has risen higher in percentage terms than other go-to options for Brits, including a takeaway pizza, along with an Indian or Chinese main course.

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A highly effective drug for a debilitating lung disease is set to become the first new treatment for the condition in more than a decade.

The medicine – dupilumab – has been shown to significantly improve the lives of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, also known as COPD.

Research published this year concluded that dupilumab patients saw uncomfortable symptoms like breathlessness and chest infections slashed by a third, compared to taking existing treatments.

Last week, UK drug safety officials approved dupilumab for use – meaning it will now be available privately – and experts predict the NHS will also give it the green light within a year.

Leonard Nimoy, who played Spock in Star Trek, was one of the three million who die globally from the disease each year

‘In my more than 20 years of practice, there have been limited advancements for patients struggling with the effects of uncontrolled COPD,’ says Professor Surya Bhatt, a lung specialist from the University of Alabama.

‘Dupilumab reduced symptoms by a magnitude never seen before.’

UK charities hail the drug as a major advance. ‘It is incredibly positive that new treatments are being developed and undergoing clinical trials, and could soon be made available for people in the UK,’ says Dr Andrew Whittamore, who is the clinical lead at Asthma + Lung UK.

Around 1.4million people in the UK have COPD. The condition occurs when the lungs and airways become damaged and inflamed. 

It’s usually associated with smoking or long-term exposure to certain types of harmful industrial chemicals or dust. However, in some cases, patients can get COPD for no clear reason.

The first symptoms are a persistent cough, excessive mucus production and shortness of breath, which can disrupt sleep.

Over time, COPD increases the risk of life-threatening chest infections. NHS patients are usually offered specialised inhalers that lower inflammation. 

Lifestyle changes, such as quitting smoking, regular exercise and keeping up to date with vaccines are also recommended. 

However, studies show these measures only marginally slow the disease’s progression.

There is no cure and patients will see their symptoms get ­progressively worse. Around half of COPD patients will not survive more than five years after their diagnosis.

One in five people wait more than a year to be diagnosed with chronic lung conditions, new research from Asthma + Lung UK revealed

Leonard Nimoy, who played Spock in Star Trek, was one of the three million who die globally from the disease each year.

He passed away in 2015 aged 83, a year after being diagnosed, having given up smoking 30 years earlier.

In the UK, 30,000 people die as a result of COPD every year.

Dupilumab is given intravenously every two weeks in hospital for a year in combination with three different inhalers.

The drug works by blocking two proteins in the body, interleukin-4 and interleukin-13, which are linked to harmful inflammation. 

Research presented last week at the European Respiratory Society Congress in Austria found that as well as reducing severe symptoms, dupilumab improved lung function overall and quality of life.

While it is too early for researchers to know exactly how much longer COPD patients on dupilumab live, experts say it is almost certain that, due to the reduction in dangerous infections, the effect is significant.

Dupilumab for COPD is under review by the NHS spending watchdog, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, with a decision expected within the next year. It is already available on the Health Service for treating several inflammatory conditions including severe asthma and eczema.

Experts say the drug is a major breakthrough in cutting the ‘endless cycles of serious symptoms’. 

‘I did not expect the results we found in the trial. It is incredible compared with what is already on the market,’ says Dr Christian Gessner, a lung expert from the University of Leipzig who led the landmark study.

‘It is really significant because as well as working for people with uncontrolled COPD, dupilumab also works as an add-on therapy alongside medicines that are already helping patients, reducing those symptoms, improving lung function and boosting quality of life.’

One patient who stands to benefit from dupilumab is Felicity Payne, 67, from Eastbourne, Sussex. The former teacher and gran was diagnosed with COPD eight years ago, as a non-smoker, after feeling ‘short of breath all the time’ and suffering repeated infections.

Doctors have been unable to find Felicity an effective treatment.

She has also been left with long-term side-effects from a steroid- based inhaler.

After trying five different drugs, she says: ‘I’m looking forward to the new treatments. The developments are definitely promising.

‘It is great that there is going to be a new way of doing things as nothing I have tried has been effective. I know one person on the trial for dupilumab and it was remarkable. It has given him his life back, so I can’t wait.’

By Kim Morrissey

Published: 10:12 BST, 15 September 2024 | Updated: 10:36 BST, 15 September 2024

Hannibal Mejbri became a Manchester United legend on Saturday despite no longer playing for the club.

The 21-year-old departed Old Trafford for Burnley and Turf Moor earlier this summer after spending fives years as a red.

However, it proved to be once a red, always a red and Mejbri showed that his football roots still lie deep. 

The midfielder started for Scott Parker’s Clarets side as they registered a 1-0 win against Leeds United, but it wasn’t his performance on the pitch that made headlines.

The Tunisia international was labelled the ‘new s***house king’ for his antics at Elland Road after he outrageously taunted his old rivals as he walked off the pitch.

Hannibal Mejbri was labelled the ‘new S***house King’ for his antics at Elland Road after he outrageously taunted his old rivals as he walked off the pitch

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The midfielder started for Scott Parker’s Burnley side as they registered a 1-0 win against Leeds United 

As he was subbed off in the 73rd minute of the game, the young midfielder made sure to rile up and taunt the large contingent of home fans.

In a video which has gone viral on social media, Mejbri can been seen going up to the home supporters and staring them down, before pointing at them and at one stage appearing to show them the 1-0 scoreline with his fingers.

His bold actions immediately earned loud jeers from both sets of fans in the stands, though for very different reasons.

Leeds fans quickly became enraged, shouting words of abuse at the star as he was ushered away by three members of security staff.

However once he had left the hostile side of the Leeds fans, he was welcomed to cheers of approval from Burnley fans who applauded and lapped up his  bold antics.

He finished off the spectacle by fisting pumping the home crowd before turning to the Leeds fans for one final dig. 

Mejbri infuriated Leeds fans with his antics as he was subbed off in the 73rd minute of the tie

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The 21-year-old bravely provoked the Leeds fans by holding up the score with his fingers 

He then went on to celebrate with the Burnley fans before turning back to make one final dig at the Elland Road faithful

The Burnley star quickly earned the respect of his club’s fans, as one person can be overheard in the video saying ‘what a f***ing legend’.

Praise for Mejbru wasn’t reduced to just inside the stadium. Once the video started to circulate on social media, it went down a treat with Burnley and Manchester United fans alike. 

One fan reacting to the video on X said ‘Hannibal Mejbri is quickly becoming the new s***house sing’.

Followed by a second who said ‘Hannibal you hero’.

While a third added ‘Love this from Hannibal Mejbri during the Burnley Leeds game this afternoon.

‘Once a red…’

As a fourth fan wrote: ‘Burnley’s Hannibal Mejbri (And former Manchester United player) seemed to enjoy his afternoon at Elland Road in front of the Leeds supporters.’

A fifth claimed ‘Hannibal has rattled Leeds fans’.

At least eight UK-bound migrants drowned today in the latest small boat disaster in the English Channel.

The French emergency services received a Mayday from a dinghy that got into difficulty off the coast at Ambleteuse, near Calais, in the early hours of Sunday morning.

‘Several migrants lost their lives,’ said Jacques Billant, the Pas de Calais prefect, putting the provisional death toll at eight.

‘A zodiac craft carrying around 50 people ran aground,’ Mr Billant said, adding that the eight unidentified migrants were declared dead at the scene.

It comes as French authorities rescued some 200 people off the coast of Calais over a 24-hour period between Friday and Saturday night. 

The disaster at Ambleteuse took place just after 1am and – within six hours – another group of migrants were setting off in exactly the same location. 

Eight migrants have died after an English Channel crossing attempt ended in disaster. (File image of a migrant boat being escorted by French officials earlier this month)

It comes as French authorities rescued some 200 people off the coast of Calais over a 24-hour period between Friday and Saturday night. (File image of migrants being brought to Dover as they attempted to reach the UK earlier this month)

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An emergency worker said: ‘Bodies were being taken up on to a ramp at Ambleteuse, yet, by 7am, a second boat departure took place there too.

‘Boats have been setting off in the area throughout the weekend – there have been non-stop rescues.’

A spokesman for the Regional Operational Centre for Surveillance and Rescue at Cap Gris-Nez confirmed that ‘at least 18 attempts’ to reach Britain were made by different boats on Saturday.

Relatively calm conditions brought out the boats, all of them thought to have been organised by people smugglers charging around £1000-a-head for a passage to Britain.

French prosecutors were set start a criminal investigation into the Ambleteuse sinking, as police searched for the smugglers involved.

Between Friday and Saturday, one boat carrying migrants was located off the coast of Le Portel, with 55 rescued. Elsewhere, 61 migrants were saved off the coast of La Becque d’Hardelot, 48 were rescued near a lighthouse, and 36 others were recovered. 

All of those rescued were taken back to land, French authorities said, adding that they monitored 18 attempts to launch boats across the Channel on Saturday.

The tragedy comes less than two weeks after the deaths of at least 12 people, including a pregnant woman and six children, when their flimsy dinghy broke up in the sea nearby.

Despite the disaster, Sir Keir Starmer last week insisted his Government was ‘making progress’ in stopping boats.

The Prime Minister said he was ‘convinced’ Labour can succeed in ‘taking down the gangs’ behind the people-smuggling trade, as he attended a summit with law enforcement agencies and security services on the issue. 

He said he was working closely with the leaders of Germany and France, but was not interested in a Europe-wide returns deal for failed asylum seekers.

But shadow home secretary James Cleverly said: ‘Even 12 tragic deaths cannot wake Labour up to the need for an actual plan to put a stop to the small boats crossing the Channel.’ 

Visiting the National Crime Agency with Home Secretary Yvette Cooper on September 6, Sir Keir was asked how he could claim there is encouraging progress given the latest figures.

The tragedy comes less than two weeks after the deaths of at least 12 people, including a pregnant woman and six children, when their flimsy dinghy broke up in the sea nearby. Pictured: Emergency services at the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, Pas-de-Calais

He told the BBC: ‘We’ve already managed to return over 3,000 people who are not entitled to be here.

‘That includes the single biggest dedicated flight that we’ve ever had.

‘So we are making progress. I acknowledge more needs to be done.

‘We’ve got to take down the gangs running this vile trade of putting people into boats in the first place.

‘That’s why I’m here today at the National Crime Agency with an operational summit to absolutely drive forward our work there.

‘I’m determined that we’re going to reclaim control of our borders, something the last government lost control of.’

Sir Keir has also revealed that he will examine Italy’s offshore processing plan for asylum-seekers.

The Prime Minister said he hopes to discuss his counterpart Giorgia Meloni’s ‘strong ideas’ on the crucial topic of illegal immigration when he visits her in Rome on Monday.

It comes as Sir Keir Starmer revealed plans to discuss illegal immigration plans with Italian PM Giorgia Meloni (pictured together at Blenheim Palace in July)

It will be the third bilateral meeting between the two leaders in as many months, after they met at the NATO summit in Washington just after the election then again at Blenheim Palace when Britain hosted the European Political Community.

Speaking to reporters on his trip to the White House, Sir Keir said: ‘I’ve already had a preliminary discussion with Giorgia Meloni about this, about how we can work together on irregular migration.

‘She has of course got some strong ideas and I hope to discuss those with her.

‘She and I have already discussed how we can improve joint operations, so that is something we will discuss.’

The latest eight deaths mean at least 45 people have died in Channel crossings so far this year, compared with 12 for the whole of 2023.

The worst previous incident was in November 2021 when 27 people died after their inflatable dinghy capsized.

Today the billionaire-funded SpaceX mission, Polaris Dawn, carried its crew to an altitude 870 miles (1,400 km) above Earth – the highest any human has been since NASA’s Apollo missions.

Onboard are the billionaire Jared Issacman, former airforce commander Scott ‘Kidd’ Poteet, and SpaceX employees Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon.

Tomorrow at 07:23 BST (02:23 ET), Issacman and the crew will face dangerous radiation and life-threatening pressure changes as they embark on the first-ever spacewalk by non-professional astronauts. 

Apart from Isaacman, none of the all-civilian crew attempting this dangerous mission have any experience in space. 

So, as these four untested astronauts prepare to make spaceflight history, MailOnline looks at who is taking part in this risky mission.

The Polaris Dawn crew are (from left to right) mission specialist and medical officer Anna Menon, mission pilot Scott ‘Kidd’ Poteet, mission commander Jared Isaacman, and mission specialist Sarah Gillis

This morning, the Polaris Dawn mission reached its highest point as the Dragon spacecraft climbed 1,400 km (870 miles) above Earth – the highest any human has been since NASA’s Apollo missions.

Jared Isaacman – mission commander 

The billionaire Jared Isaacman, 41, is most well known as the founder and CEO of the American payment processing company Shift4.

Isaacman founded the company in 1999 out of his parent’s basement when he was just 16 years old.

After dropping out of high school to work as a cybersecurity consultant, Isaacman used a $10,000 loan from his grandad to convince a bank to certify him to sell credit card terminals.

That business ballooned and now handles transactions for a third of America’s restaurants and hotels – processing more than $200 billion in payments every year.

In 2004, Isaacman was burned out by the long hours and intense stresses of running his company and began to spend more time on his hobby of flying planes.

In 2009, Isaacman smashed the previous speed record for round the world flight in a light jet by travelling to and from Morristown, New Jersey in 61 hours and 51 minutes – 21 hours shorter than the previous record.

With a world record under his belt, the FAA granted Isaacman an ‘Experimental Type’ ranking which let him fly fighter jets normally reserved for the military.

However, it was in 2012 that he realised he could turn his unconventional hobby into a business.

Alongside Sean Gustafson, a former member of the Thunderbirds Air Force stunt, Isaacman began buying up dozens of fighter jets from countries all around the world.

Eventually, Isaacman and Gustafson had assembled 100 fighter jets – the largest privately owned fleet of military aircraft in the world – and formed a company, Draken International.

The firm uses the planes to provide outsourced fighter pilot training to the US Air Force – a business model that has proved to be wildly profitable.

In 2019, Isaacman made himself a billionaire by selling a majority stake in Draken to the Wall Street firm Blackrock, holding on to only a small share and a Soviet-era MiG fighter jet.

Jared Isaacman (pictured) is the founder and CEO of Shift4, one of America’s biggest payment processing companies. Isaacman founded the company out of his parents’ basement when he was just 16 years old 

Isaacman is a trained pilot with a licence to fly fighter jets. He used this experience to found a company called Draken International which provided training to the US Air Force 

Even after selling his majority stake in Draken Internation, Isaacman still owns a MiG fighter jet which he flew as part of a display team called the Black Diamond Jet Team. Pictured: Isaacman flies in his MiG while preparing for the Polaris Dawn mission 

While still running his payment firm Shift4, Isaacman then began to pursue ways of getting himself into space.

In 2021, he approached Elon Musk with the idea of purchasing an entire passenger flight from SpaceX which could take himself and three other passengers into orbit.

This culminated in the Inspiration4 mission, the first orbital spaceflight with an entirely civilian crew.

On board a SpaceX Crew Dragon spaceship, Isaacman and the crew reached an orbital altitude of 364 miles (585 km).

In 2021, Isaacman approached Elon Musk with the offer of funding a full civilian orbital mission. This became the Inspiration4 mission. Pictured: Isaacman poses with a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket 

Apparently very happy with his experience, Isaacman subsequently commissioned three more flights from SpaceX including the Polaris Dawn mission.

However, the Polaris Dawn spacewalk will be the most risky moment.

Experts warn that during their 15 minutes outside the spacecraft, the crew will run the risk of encountering decompression sickness, radiation poisoning, and suffocation.

While the crew have undergone extensive training, that is also a concern that the untested crew may throw up due to motion sickness during the flight.  

Spaceflight safety expert Tommaso Sgobba told MailOnline: ‘Now, if you vomit while you are inside the spacesuit, that is the end of your story – your life story. You get suffocated.’

After Polaris Dawn, Isaacman’s next flight will be another trip aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.

The final of the funded flights would be the first crewed mission aboard SpaceX’s next-generation Starship spacecraft which NASA intends to use for landing astronauts on the moon in 2026.

During the Inspiration4 mission, Isaacman (second from left) flew into orbit with a crew of three other non-professional astronauts 

Isaacman has commissioned three flights from SpaceX of which the Polaris Dawn mission is the first. Pictured: Isaacman wears the SpaceX extravehicular activity suit 

Scott ‘Kidd’ Poteet – mission pilot

Behind the controls of the Dragon spacecraft for Polaris Dawn will be former Air Force commander Scott Poteet, 50, who goes by his callsign ‘Kidd’.

Poteet has a degree in outdoor education from the University of New Hampshire and spent nearly 20 years with the as a US Air Force. 

He logged more than 3,200 hours of flight time and has flown missions over the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea, Afghanistan, Bosnia, Kosovo, and Iraq. 

But it was during his time in the Thunderbirds flight display group that he first met Jared Isaacman.

In 2016, Poteet left the Air Force and joined Isaacman’s fighter training company Draken International as director of business development.

Using his military contacts, Poteet led the development of a $300 million (£229m) contract to provide training for the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps.

Scott ‘Kidd’ Poteet will be Mission Pilot on Polaris Dawn, he is a long-time friend and business partner of Jared Isaacman 

Poteet is a retired Air Force commander with over 20 years of military experience. Pictured: Poteet poses with his FA-16 jet during his time as a member of the Thunderbird Air Force display team 

Poteet first met Isaacman while flying in the Thunderbirds display team. He then went on to work for Issacman at both Daken International, Shift4, and as mission director for Inspiration4. Pictured: Poteet prepares to enter a fighter jet while preparing for Inspiration4

Jared Isaacman, his older brother Michael Isaacman, former colleague Sean Gustafson, and Scott Poteet (left to right) embark on an expedition to climb Mt Vinson in Antarctica in January 2020

In his four years at the company, Poteet secured over $350 million (£268m) in contracts for Isaacman’s company.

Since Isaacman sold Draken, Poteet has followed him through various projects – joining Shift4 as VP of strategy in 2020 and serving as mission director for Inspiration4 until 2022.

He and Isaacman have also embarked on various mountaineering expeditions together, culminating in an attempt to summit Mount Vinson in Antarctica in 2020.

In his personal life, he and his wife Kristen have two daughters and one son.

Poteet is also a keen triathlete and has completed 15 Ironman races since 2000 including four Ironman World Championships.

Scott Poteet and his wife Kristen (pictured) have two daughters and one son 

Sarah Gillis – mission specialist

Also joining the Polaris Dawn mission will be two SpaceX employees including the company’s lead space operations engineer Sarah Gillis, 30.

Described as a ‘classical violinist turned space explorer’ Gillis may not have had the most conventional path to becoming an astronaut.

Trained from the age of two by her mother (a professional concert violinist), the young Gillis had little interest in space growing up.

It was only when a high school mentor, former NASA astronaut Joe Tanner, encouraged her to pursue a degree in aerospace that she considered other careers.

Apparently still somewhat torn between the arts and sciences, Gillis attended the University of Colorado, Boulder to study engineering and dance.

SpaceX lead space operations engineer Sarah Gillis, 30, will join Polaris Dawn as Mission Specialist 

Jared Isaacman and Sarah Gillson (pictured) first met while Gilson prepared Isaacman for the Inspiration4 mission

However, in 2015, Gillis joined SpaceX as an intern and has been working for the company ever since.

During that time she supported real-time operations for Dragon’s cargo resupply missions to and from the International Space Station and as a crew communicator for Dragon’s human spaceflight missions.

Her role means she is responsible for overseeing the company’s astronaut training programme and has even prepared NASA astronauts for the prior missions.

It was in this role that she first met Jared Isaacman as he was preparing for the Inspiration4 mission.

Not only did Gillis oversee months of Isaacman’s training but she was also the voice for mission control for the flight.

Gillson originally trained as a classical violinist before studying engineering and beginning work for SpaceX. Pictured: Gillson prepares for freefall skydive training 

Speaking in the Netflix documentary Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space, Gillis said she had to wear ‘two hats’ to be successful as an operations engineer.

‘One is the operational hat, where you need to understand exactly what actions you need to take to keep them safe. 

‘On the other aspect, I care very deeply about every single one of these people now.’

As Isaacman and the Inspiration4 crew prepared to launch, she told him ‘It has been an absolute honour to prepare you for this historic flight’. 

Outside of work, Gillis is an avid climber and hiker and says that her favourite thing is ‘a cup of hot coffee while camping in the wilderness’. 

Jared Isaacman (second from left) and Sarah Gillson (right) first met while Gilson prepared Isaacman for the Inspiration4 mission

Anna Menon – mission specialist and medical officer

The final member of the Polaris Dawn Crew is Anna Menon, 38, also a lead space operations engineer for SpaceX.

As medical officer Menon will be responsible for ensuring the crew’s well-being as well as overseeing the biomedical experiments planned for the trip.

In a video posted to Instagram, she says that her inspiration to become an astronaut was a school trip to a NASA centre she took at the age of nine.

Menon received a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and Spanish from Texas Christian University before undertaking a Master’s in biomedical engineering from Duke University.

In 2011, Menon joined NASA as an office intern and after just two years worked her way up to become biomedical flight controller for the ISS.

Anna Menon, 38, will join Polaris Dawn as mission secialist and medical officer. She previously worked for NASA as biomedical flight controller for the ISS before joining SpaceX to become lead operations engineer 

Anna Menon is also the author of a children’s book ‘Kisses from Space’ which she plans to livestream from orbit to her two children and children at the St Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Mrs Menon is married to Anil Menon (centre left) who is a member of NASA’s astronaut corps. They have two children James (left), 6, and Grace, 3 (right)

After almost eight years at the space agency, she then joined SpaceX and became lead space operations engineer in 2019.

However, Menon has not only used her expertise in the realm of space travel.

In 2015, immediately after the earthquake in Nepal, she joined non-profits to help recover water and sanitation in affected regions.

Menon is also the author of a children’s book called ‘Kisses from Space’ which was published earlier this year.

While in orbit, Menon says that she will livestream a reading of the book to her two children James, 6, and Grace, 3 as well as the children at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Her husband, Anil Menon, is also an astronaut and is SpaceX’s first flight surgeon and a member of NASA’s astronaut corps.