Scott Hammond

Scott is a co-founder of Shetland Space Centre and was appointed CEO in August 2025. Since inception, Scott acted as Director of Operations, directly responsible for the planning, development and build, licensing and operation of the spaceport and as deputy CEO, leading on contract negotiations and business model development.

Scott has worked in a variety of industries, including commercial property, the oil industry and security services. However, much of his career has been in aerospace, first as an RAF pilot where he served as a staff officer and Flight Commander specialising in weapons instruction, development and procurement.

Upon leaving the RAF he flew commercially before moving back to the military instructing young pilots on the Tornado simulator.

SaxaVord Spaceport

SaxaVord Spaceport, located at Lamba Ness in Unst, Shetland, is the UK’s only fully licensed vertical launch spaceport. With planning permission for up to 30 launches per year, SaxaVord is being developed as a multi-user spaceport serving UK, European and international launch operators.

Established in 2017, SaxaVord has grown from an ambitious project in one of the most northerly parts of the UK into a strategically important piece of national space infrastructure. It has one operational launch complex, including an integration hangar, together with dedicated tracking, telemetry and flight termination systems. Two further launch complexes, additional integration facilities and mission management infrastructure are being developed to support multiple launch providers.

SaxaVord’s customers include German launch companies Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) and HyImpulse. RFA has constructed dedicated infrastructure at SaxaVord and in 2025 became the first company to receive a UK licence to launch vertically into orbit. 

HyImpulse, which has been testing its innovative hybrid propulsion technology in Shetland since 2023, plans to conduct the second flight of its SR75 suborbital launch vehicle from SaxaVord.

The spaceport is designed principally to provide access to polar and sun-synchronous orbits, supporting the deployment of small satellites used for communications, navigation, weather forecasting, Earth observation, climate monitoring and security. Space-based services underpin modern economies and critical national infrastructure, making reliable and resilient access to space increasingly important.

In September 2026, a £60 million public-private investment programme was announced to accelerate SaxaVord’s development, comprising £30 million of planned UK Government investment, subject to due diligence, alongside £30 million of private investment. The programme will support completion of all three launchpads, mission management infrastructure and a second integration hangar as SaxaVord moves towards regular commercial launch operations.