Our Leadership

Ron Garan

Chief Executive Officer

ispace - U.S. CEO, Ron Garan is a former NASA astronaut, serial entrepreneur, humanitarian, and highly decorated combat fighter pilot. Prior to joining ispace - U.S., Ron served in various leadership positions including EVP of Operations and Co-President in the commercial spaceflight company, World View. Ron racked up 178 days in space and more than 71 million miles in 2,842 orbits between tours on the US Space Shuttle, Russian Soyuz spacecraft, and the International Space Station. During his time in space, Ron conducted four spacewalks in support of ISS construction and maintenance. Prior to those space journeys, he lived and conducted research on the bottom of the ocean in the world’s only undersea research lab, Aquarius. Before reaching the summit of his career, Ron, a former test pilot and graduate of the US Naval Test Pilot School taught hundreds of elite fighter pilots how to "up their game" as a flight instructor at the prestigious USAF Fighter Weapons School, the Air Force version of Top Gun. He is the author of the critically acclaimed books, The Orbital Perspective, the recently-released, Floating in Darkness – A Journey of Evolution, and the children’s book, Railroad to the Moon. Ron is celebrated not just for his research in space but also for his humanitarian contribution to life on Earth.

Elizabeth Kryst

Executive Vice President of Programs

Elizabeth Kryst is responsible for programs, supply chain, business development, communications, government affairs, and business transformation initiatives for the U.S. entity. Elizabeth has held various leadership roles across the aerospace sector, ranging from new product introduction to program management and strategic planning in advanced material science and environmental sciences. Prior to joining ispace - U.S., Elizabeth most recently served as the Chief of Staff – Vice President of Business Operations for World View, an Aerospace startup company pioneering un-crewed high altitude Stratospheric flight systems for a myriad of remote sensing applications. She holds a Masters in Engineering (MEng) from Arizona State University and a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Ricardo Woodbury

Executive Vice President of Finance, Accounting, & IT

Ricardo Woodbury is a seasoned finance professional overseeing the Finance, Accounting, and Information Technology functions for ispace - U.S. He has built a distinguished career navigating complex business environments, taking on progressively senior roles in industrial manufacturing, specialty chemicals, and aerospace. Ricardo’s experience spans government contracting, joint venture (JV) formation, financial management, and strategic operations. He holds a Master of Science in Accounting and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Western Michigan University and is a Certified Management Accountant (CMA).

Ananda Martin

General Counsel

Ananda Martin is the General Counsel of ispace-U.S.  Ananda has built and led world-class legal teams at both emerging growth and public companies in the U.S., Asia, and Europe, previously serving as General Counsel of space data and analytics company Spire Global (NYSE:SPIR), Senior Corporate Counsel, APAC at Amazon, and as a partner in the White Collar Investigations practice at Paul Hastings LLPs’ Shanghai office. A lifelong student of Japan, Ms. Martin majored in Japanese language at Washington University in St. Louis and holds an MA in Japanese history from Columbia University. She received her JD from Harvard Law School and is an alum of the Japan America Student Conference, a US-Japan Leadership Program Fellow, and a Japan Fulbright Fellow.

Katie Lucas

Executive Vice President of Human Resources

Katie Lucas brings over 15 years of leadership and management experience, specializing in building foundational HR systems, scaling teams, and refining processes to support organizational growth. She is passionate about aligning people strategies with business goals to create workplaces where employees feel valued, supported, and empowered to thrive. Originally from Georgia and now based in Denver, Katie enjoys spending time with her family and has a lifelong love of books.