Born in Avigliana (TO) the 7th of April 1955, Walter Cugno boasts a 40 years long experience in the development of complex projects in the field of Aerospace, most of all for Space Exploration programs in both manned and robotic configuration. Across the years he has been taking on assignments with increasing responsibility, from Aeritalia, Alenia Spazio, Alcatel Alenia Space to Thales Alenia Space. Before the creation of the Joint Venture between Leonardo and Thales, Walter Cugno has served as Program and Operation Manager, acquiring an extensive know how in engineering, design, production & manufacturing, assembly, integration, testing and R&D. He had significant roles in projects like Spacelab, Tethered Satellite, IRIS, Lageos, Hipparcos and SAX X-ray satellites, acting as Product Assurance Manager, Assembly, Integration and Test manager, Launch Operation Manager and Project Manager.

From 1997 to 2013 served as Program Manager of International Space Station programs, in particular for New NASA Initiative like the Nodes 2 (Harmony) & 3 (Tranquility), the Cupola, MPLM (Multipurpose Logistic Module) and the Cygnus Pressurized Cargo Modules.

Since January 1, 2016, Walter Cugno has held a dual mandate as Vice President of the Exploration and Science Domain at Thales Alenia Space and Head of the company's Turin site. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of ALTEC, a joint venture between Thales Alenia Space and the Italian Space Agency.

Currently a key figure for space exploration in Italy, he serves, among other positions, as Senior Advisor to the CEO of Thales Alenia Space for space exploration dynamics and as Vice President of the Piedmont Aerospace District (DAP).