The UK arm of the US satellite company Viasat, based in Aldershot and formerly the encryption firm Stonewood Group, working on secure communications, defence and space connectivity.
Viasat UK is the British part of Viasat, a satellite communications and secure networking company headquartered in the United States. Its UK office, in Aldershot in Hampshire, employed roughly 70 people when Viasat described it in a 2021 article. About half of the team builds software and hardware for government encryption devices, which protect sensitive information and are used by several NATO nations. The other half works on space and tactical communications for the UK Ministry of Defence and the growing European space sector, and was preparing to support the ViaSat-3 satellites.
The Aldershot business started in 1995 as Stonewood Group, an encryption company, and Viasat bought it in 2010. In late 2020 it won a contract with CDW to build a next-generation command post for NATO's Allied Rapid Reaction Corps, and in March 2021 it opened a Network Operations Center and a Cyber Security Operations Center linked to Viasat's headquarters in Carlsbad, California. Viasat's wider statement of purpose is that it believes everyone and everything in the world can be connected, and it wants to build a global communications network that is reliable, secure and affordable while building a sustainable future in space.
Viasat's footprint in the UK is now larger than Aldershot. After buying Inmarsat, it opened an International Business Headquarters in London in April 2024, which also hosts its UK Network Operations Centre and Satellite Control Centre. The London team works with customers in maritime, aviation and government, and has an innovation centre exploring internet-of-things and direct-to-device satellite links. Aldershot, about 90 minutes from London according to the 2021 article, remains the home of the encryption and defence team described there. We could not confirm how the two sites are organised today.
The 2021 article gives a flavour of life in the Aldershot office. UK managing director Steve Beeching said the team values outcomes over process, in his words, "we focus on the outcomes, not the process". Operations director Jess Everill, who started in customer service and has been with the company 13 years, said, "I don't like things to stay the same, and neither does Viasat." Finance director Stuart Black joined in 2020, and office administrator Saima Begum said her role had grown over time. Staff describe varied work and chances to try new roles; these are company descriptions.
Roles include software and hardware engineers working on encryption devices, network and cyber security operations staff, systems engineers who plan tactical and space communications for defence customers, and finance, facilities and operations colleagues like those quoted. Computer science, electronics, maths and engineering are natural subjects, and the 2021 article shows people moving in from customer service. Check Viasat's website for current roles.
Website: www.viasat.com
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