BridgeComm Names Rich Tortorelli as Chief Systems Engineer

• Veteran in Large Scale Constellation Design and Development of Space Systems Joins Leader in Optical Wireless Communications to Spearhead Satellite Optical Communications Product Development

Denver. 10 February 2022. BridgeComm, Inc., a leader in optical wireless communications (OWC) solutions and services, today announced that Rich Tortorelli will join the company as a chief systems engineer. Having developed, managed and executed 160 plus satellites with space-based constellations, Tortorelli brings thirty years of invaluable experience to BridgeComm to enhance its OWS space produce development efforts.

Prior to BridgeComm, Tortorelli served as the chief systems engineer at General Atomics, where he oversaw a NASA program, mentored and led a technical staff of 50 individuals and was responsible for systems end-to-end architecture, integration, testing, verification, launch and deployment, among many other responsibilities.

“The Second Space Race centers around satellites, and Rich’s wealth of knowledge and deep understanding of this field will be vital to our continued success,” said BridgeComm CEO Barry A. Matsumori. “Moreover, his leadership and mentorship expertise – especially for teams that are geographically and culturally diverse – will be essential to BridgeComm’s future growth and training of junior staff.”

Tortorelli has worked for a variety of satellite companies developing and delivering satellites to customers such as the Missile Defense Agency, AirForce and NASA. For over a decade, he worked on both Iridium constellations in a variety of capacities, including engineering and program manager for a space situational awareness program pioneering hosted payloads. He was also the vice president of ASAT (Assured Space Access Technologies), helping to develop the “Space Tracking and Suvellience System” (STSS), a missile defense satellite system, and has worked for other companies including, Northrop and Lockheed Martin.

“I am honored to be a part of such a prestigious team of specialists and veterans in optical wireless communications solutions across space, air, land and sea domains,” says Tortorelli. “Knowing how vital it is for secure communication transmissions, both for commercial and government applications, I aim to further BridgeComm’s mission of augmenting RF with OWC.”

Tortorelli received his master’s degree in electrical engineering from Loyola College in Maryland in the early ‘90s in conjunction with interning at the prestigious Allied Signal Advanced Technology Center in Columbia, Maryland, working on the Navy’s Advanced Antiship Missile and Avenger stealth fighter program.