Photo: NASA

Rear Admiral Stephen S. Oswald (USNR) has accepted a position as Boeing Space Shuttle vice president & program director, effective Dec. 10.

In his new position Oswald will be responsible for overall strategic direction and successful execution of the Space Shuttle program.

"Steve brings executive, managerial, technological and operational experience to this assignment," said Mike Mott, Boeing vice president and general manager, Human Space Flight & Exploration (HSF&E).

"This move demonstrates our commitment to our customers," said Mott. "Steve will be located in Houston to work closely with United Space Alliance and NASA Johnson Space Center customers."

Boeing is prime contractor to NASA for International Space Station and subcontractor to United Space Alliance for the shuttle program. Last July Boeing announced that the HSF&E Space Shuttle Program Office would move from Southern California to Houston, and those employees would move to Houston and the Florida Space Coast.

The businesswide move allows Boeing to complement customer functions for the International Space Station and Space Shuttle programs specifically, while addressing the business's growing need for cost reductions.

Oswald replaces Stan Albrecht who will remain in Huntington Beach, Calif., on special assignment for the HSF&E transition.

Currently Oswald serves as the deputy commander of a Washington-based Joint Task Force that is responsible for the defense of more than 3 million Department of Defense computers and associated networks.

Oswald joined NASA in 1984 as an aerospace engineer and instructor pilot and was selected as an astronaut candidate in June 1985. He is a veteran of three Space Shuttle missions. He commanded mission STS-67 aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour in March of 1995 and piloted two missions aboard Discovery in 1992 and 1993. With the completion of his third space flight, Oswald has logged more than 33 days in space.

After STS-67, he was assigned to NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C., as deputy associate administrator for Space Operations. He was responsible for Space Shuttle, Expendable Launch Vehicles, and Space Communications for the agency. Oswald retired from NASA in January 2000.

A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy in 1973, Oswald was designated a naval aviator in 1974. He has logged more than 7,000 flight hours in more than 40 different aircraft.