The US space industry does not expect the departure of Craig Steidle, NASA’s associate administrator for the office of exploration systems, to affect the Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) contractor selection timetable. The exploration systems office will develop vehicles for the US vision for space exploration that envisages a return to the Moon by 2020.
Steidle is to leave his job on 24 June. Doug Cooke, deputy associate administrator for directorate integration, will step into Steidle’s position until a successor is named.
“Anytime there is a big change out you get a lot of uncertainty, [but as NASA administrator Michael Griffin] gets his team lined up, we’ll get back to certainty,” says Doug Young, Northrop Grumman’s CEV programme manager. The CEV timetable is expected to see contractor selection in early 2006, following a competition between Northrop and Lockheed Martin CEV teams. Steidle joined NASA in January 2004, but his position became untenable when he refused a reassignment to an undisclosed NASA centre. This automatically terminated his position.
Source: Flight International
