Defence and national security leader to guide strategic growth and expand OSL's impact across NATO-aligned programmes
READING, England, June 4, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- OSL has appointed Victor Chavez CBE as Chair, following a year of service as a Non-Executive Director. His appointment reinforces OSL's strategic focus on delivering advanced air and ground protection for fixed-site deployments in homeland defence and national security environments.
Victor was Chief Executive of Thales UK for almost a decade, where he led major defence and security programmes across the UK and allied nations. During his career in industry, he has worked at the highest levels of government and the UK Ministry of Defence and was awarded a CBE in 2015 for services to the defence and security industry.
As Chair, Victor will support OSL's growing footprint in the defence and security market, where its operationally proven solutions are helping address evolving drone and ground-based threats. His leadership will help shape the company's role in NATO-aligned programmes and advance its mission to bridge civil innovation with homeland defence readiness.
"Victor brings not only experience, but relevance," said Mark Legh-Smith, Chief Executive Officer at OSL. "As nations seek faster, more adaptable defence innovation, his perspective will ensure we stay ahead, particularly in fixed-site defence and coalition-aligned deployments. We're building on our civil expertise to bring high-impact, proven technology to the homeland defence space.
I'd also like to thank Jim Sumner for his outstanding service as Chair over the past 3 years. We're pleased he will continue to support the company as a Non-Executive Director."
"I'm very proud to take on the role of Chair at OSL," said Victor. "Its blend of operational understanding and technical ingenuity is exactly what the defence and security sector needs. There's a real opportunity here to apply civil sector innovation to homeland defence challenges, and I look forward to supporting the team as they grow that impact."
The appointment comes as OSL expands its defence offering across Europe, building on successful deployments at critical civilian infrastructure sites including airports, prisons, and energy facilities. Recent developments in OSL's autonomous security technologies, such as the completion of Project HADO® and the launch of its Remote Monitoring of Sensitive Sites (RMSS) capability, further strengthen its ability to deliver high-assurance, multi-sensor solutions to defence and national security partners.
About OSL
OSL is a UK-based security technology company specialising in adaptive, multi-layered solutions to protect high-value, risk-prone environments from unauthorised drones and other emerging threats. Founded by security and operational experts, OSL delivers advanced, technology-agnostic systems that integrate layered sensors, proprietary AI, and real-time data fusion to safeguard complex 3D spaces.
Its core platform, FACE®, enables centralised monitoring, precise threat detection, and autonomous response capabilities across both aerial and ground domains. From design and deployment to 24/7 remote monitoring and lifecycle support, OSL provides full-spectrum protection tailored to each operational environment.
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