Major General (Ret'd) Simon Humphrey CBE

Vice President Hanwha Aerospace

Simon Humphrey CBE commissioned into the British Army in 1985 and served for 36 years before his retirement (from his first career) in 2021. Much of his field soldiering was spent in leadership roles within the Royal Artillery from Troop to Brigade. On that journey he was privileged to have commanded 1st Regiment Royal Horse Artillery and the Artillery Brigade of 1st (United Kingdom) Armoured Division. Along the way, a broad range of staff appointments have kept him busy, including an appointment with responsibility for operational commitment planning for the British Army, for which he was subsequently appointed OBE and a 2 year tour as Deputy Principal Staff Officer (DPSO) to UK Chief of Defence Staff across a period that included a change of government, a change of CDS and the Strategic Defence and Security Review. In 2015 he assumed the appointment of Director of the Combat Support Capability Directorate in Army HQ and led the development of Combat Support capability for both the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. He deployed to Afghanistan in early 2018, for a 12 month appointment as: Commander British Forces, where, amongst other things he planned and implemented the uplift of UK forces, and also Commander of the Kabul Security Force, a 7 nation force responsible for NATO advisor force protection and support to Afghan Security forces in delivering security to Kabul, a role for which he was subsequently appointed CBE. He was promoted to Major General in early 2019 and deployed to Tampa Florida, as the Senior British Military Advisor to US Central Command. Since leaving the British Army, he has worked for 18 months as an Independent Consultant, advising companies on Security, Risk and Defence related areas, before joining Hanwha Aerospace as the Vice President responsible for Business Development and Strategy in the UK.