Dave O’Brien is The Tropo Project Manager for Spectra Group and has been with the company for 5 years.  Dave joined the British Army as an Apprentice Tradesman technician at the age of 16 and served a total of 38 years, leaving as a Lt Colonel (OF4). After 5 years in conventional units, Dave completed the Special Forces Communicator course in 1983 and f or much of his career in the British Special Forces was responsible for the development and delivery of J6 capabilities at tactical and strategic levels. His final tour was as Director J6 at NATO SOF HQ (NSHQ) in Mons, where he was responsible for BICES, both static and deployed, and the development of the Special Operation Component Command (SOCC), giving him a comprehensive insight into Global SOF. Since leaving the Army, Dave has been involved in capacity building in Somalia, supporting various Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) tasks, assessed cyber vulnerabilities and as Tactical System SME for various companies before working for Spectra Group. Dave brings experience of all facets of communications and network infrastructure, primarily with a technical and Operational background across the defence spectrum. Over the last three years Dave has worked closely with DSTL, COMTECH and UK Navy and Army users on behalf of Spectra Group to develop, test and investigate CONOPS and the Tropo system's small form factor, low power, high bandwidth ( COMET ) capability in a satellite and GPS shielded environment.