A handover ceremony was held at Türksat Headquarters as Hasan Hüseyin Ertok handed over his role as CEO to Ahmet Hamdi Atalay.
The ceremony, organized to mark the leadership transition, was attended by Deputy Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Ömer Fatih Sayan, Türksat Chairman of the Board Prof. Dr. Kemal Yüksek, Türksat’s senior management, directors, and employees.
Deputy Minister Ömer Fatih Sayan highlighted Hasan Hüseyin Ertok's significant contributions at various levels within Türksat, stating, “He served under the vision of a great Türksat, contributing to nearly every aspect of the company. He was involved from A to Z in the launch of three satellites and ensured that our entirely domestic and national satellite began operations in orbit.” Sayan also emphasized that the newly appointed CEO, Ahmet Hamdi Atalay, is a respected figure in the industry, saying, “I believe he will bring further success to Türksat, and we will work together for many years to come.”
Türksat Chairman of the Board Prof. Dr. Kemal Yüksek underlined the strategic importance of Türksat for Turkey, stating, “Hasan Hüseyin Bey accomplished remarkable and successful work. I am confident we will continue to achieve great things together. I also wish our new CEO, Ahmet Hamdi Atalay, success. With his experience and character, I am sure he will contribute greatly to this institution.”
At the ceremony, Türksat’s new CEO, Ahmet Hamdi Atalay, acknowledged the successful projects completed by Türksat thus far and expressed optimism about the future, saying, “I believe that with this team, we will achieve great things together and leave our mark with outstanding projects.” Atalay thanked Ertok for his service to Türksat and wished him success in his future endeavors.
During his farewell, Ertok expressed his gratitude and extended his best wishes to Atalay. Reflecting on his tenure, Ertok said, “Together with my colleagues, we achieved invaluable accomplishments at Türksat. We always strived to take the company to new heights. We increased the number of satellites to six and undertook significant projects in cable and IT. Although I am leaving Türksat, I will always consider myself a part of it. I am confident that our new CEO, Ahmet Hamdi Bey, will lead Türksat to where it truly belongs.” After a mutual exchange of flowers, Ertok was bid farewell by Türksat employees at the Gölbaşı Campus.
Biography of Ahmet Hamdi Atalay
Born in 1963 in Trabzon, Ahmet Hamdi Atalay graduated from the Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering at Yıldız Technical University in 1984.
He started his career as an R&D Engineer at Teletaş in 1985-1986. In 1987, he joined Nortel Networks Netaş as a Quality Engineer and continued to serve as Quality Manager and Wireless Systems Manager between 1998 and 2004. From 2004 to 2009, Atalay was a Board Member at the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK).
Between 2010 and 2015, he served as the CEO of Probil and held multiple executive roles, including Executive Board Member at Netaş (2011-2015), Board Member at Kron (2013-2015), and Board Member at HAVELSAN (2013-2015). In 2015, Atalay was appointed as the CEO of HAVELSAN, a role he held until 2020.
Ahmet Hamdi Atalay is married, has two children, and is fluent in English and German.