Terran Orbital promotes Margherita Cardi to Vice President of European Operations & Head of Strategic Programs
Terran Orbital has promoted Margherita Cardi to Vice President of European Operations & Head of Strategic Programs.
In her expanded executive role, Cardi will serve as the senior-most operational leader for Terran Orbital’s European organization, overseeing all local functions and departments in Italy and rep
orting directly to Peter Krauss, President and CEO of Terran Orbital and Managing Director of Tyvak International.
“Margherita has been an important part of Tyvak International almost from the beginning, and she has grown as a leader alongside the organization,” said Peter Krauss, President and CEO of Terran Orbital. “She understands our customers, our programs and, most importantly, our people. She has proven that she can lead complex missions, build strong relationships with our institutional partners and bring teams together to execute. I am confident she is the right person to lead our European team through this next chapter.”
Cardi joined Tyvak International in 2016 as the company’s third employee and has held positions of increasing responsibility across systems engineering, program management, business development, and executive leadership. Most recently, she served as Vice President of Programs and Business Development, leading a multidisciplinary organization encompassing Program Management, Business Development, and Systems Engineering.
Throughout her tenure, Cardi has played a central role in managing and executing Tyvak International’s programs, particularly those supporting European institutional customers. She has led complex, multi-stakeholder space initiatives and helped secure major institutional contracts with the European Space Agency (ESA), the Italian Space Agency (ASI), as well as commercial customers.
Among the programs Cardi has led is Milani, the CubeSat developed for ESA’s Hera planetary defense mission. As Milani Program Manager, Cardi led the spacecraft’s development and delivery for the pioneering deep-space mission to study the Didymos binary asteroid system. Hera is scheduled to arrive at Didymos in late 2026, with Milani expected to be released in early 2027 to support the mission’s detailed investigation of the asteroid system.
“Being part of Tyvak International since its early days and seeing what this team has built over the past 10 years has been an incredible experience,” said Margherita Cardi, Vice President of European Operations & Head of Strategic Programs. “We have grown from a small team with an ambitious vision into an organization trusted to execute highly complex missions for some of Europe’s most important customers. I am proud of what we have accomplished together and excited to take on this responsibility as we continue growing our capabilities, strengthening our customer relationships and delivering the missions ahead.”
Cardi brings extensive experience in program execution, customer relations, organizational leadership, and team development. She has also represented Tyvak International at industry events, keynote presentations, media engagements, and a TEDx Talk.
Prior to joining Tyvak International, Cardi worked at Vitrociset S.p.A. in program management and systems engineering roles supporting the Vega launch program, including launch campaigns at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. She holds a master’s degree in Space Engineering and a second-level master’s in Space Systems and Services, both from Sapienza University of Rome.
In her new role, Cardi will oversee Tyvak International’s operations in Italy and help drive the execution of the company’s European programs while strengthening relationships with institutional, government and commercial customers across the region. Krauss will remain Managing Director and legal corporate representative of Tyvak International.
