Martin Neill

Vice President, Security and Defense

Martin had a 20-year career with the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence, before retiring in 2012. During that time Martin rose to the rank of Senior Civil Servant and had undertaken many challenging leadership positions. Over the course of his career, he had the unique experience of acting as a senior executive in both the British and American governments.

Before joining AstraNav in 2021 as Vice President, Security and Defense, Martin drove the successful transformation of several multi-million dollar companies. He has done this in different markets, including consumer products and financial services. He currently sits on several Boards.

From 2009 to 2012 Martin was a Defense Diplomat at the British Embassy in Washington D.C. In this role, Martin was responsible for the strategy and acquisition of capability and equipment from the United States for the British Armed forces and was instrumental in securing Senate and Congressional approval for the UK-US Defence Trade Cooperation.

Appointed into the Senior Civil Service, Martin was a Director of the Ministry of Defence in London from 2007 to 2009. Prior to this, Martin was the first British civilian to be on exchange to Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) in the United States Defense Department, where he held a number of leadership roles.

Before 2007, Martin held various policy and analytical posts in the UK Government. As a Senior Project Manager from 1996 to 1999 Martin delivered numerous projects ranging from applied research to data analytics. He started his career as a Physicist joining the Ministry of Defence to conduct electro-optical research for the British Army.