Boeing Starliner chief to retire, but staying on through next flight test

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Boeing's Starliner program leader will soon retire from the company but stay on as an adviser through the capsule's test flight later this year, according to a memo sent out to employees this week.

With a 35-year career under his belt, John Vollmer, vice president and manager of Boeing's Commercial Crew Program, is slated to retire from the aerospace giant in early March. He was instrumental in the development of Starliner, one of two capsules chosen by NASA to return astronauts to the International Space Station after the space shuttle program ended in 2011.

The announcement was made Thursday by Jim Chilton, Boeing's senior vice president of space, and a copy of the memo was obtained by FLORIDA TODAY.

"John Vollmer is someone who has shown us what a 35-year Boeing career looks like," Chilton said in the memo (see the full text below). "Thankfully, John has offered to stay on board as an advisor to the program through Starliner’s (next) mission. This transition period will enable shared learning and strengthens program continuity."

Starliner flew its first uncrewed test flight in December 2019, but it failed to reach the ISS due to software and hardware issues, forcing a turnaround back to Earth and safe landing in New Mexico. Boeing has opted to pay out of its own pocket for a second test flight, known as Orbital Flight Test 2 or OFT-2, which is set to fly no earlier than May.

More:NASA targeting March for rollout of SLS moon rocket to KSC pad

Once operational, Starliner will join SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule in transporting astronauts to and from the ISS. SpaceX has so far hosted four crewed launches to the station.

Vollmer kicked off his space career as a space shuttle engineer, helped develop the ISS and eventually became its chief engineer, and has since led the Starliner team at Kennedy Space Center.

Filling his position on March 4 will be Mark Nappi, the current Boeing program director for NASA's Artemis I mission slated for launch no earlier than May. Boeing also builds the core stage of the massive Space Launch System rocket, a separate vehicle from Starliner designed to take astronauts to farther destinations like the moon and Mars. 

In that role, Chilton said, Nappi was responsible for "assembling the workforce, establishing operations processes, commencing production of the core stage, performing a full-flight duration hot fire test, and ensuring readiness for the upcoming wet dress rehearsal and launch of SLS on the Artemis I mission."

Before Boeing, Nappi led two contracts at KSC with United Space Alliance and Vencore. He also worked on the shuttle, ISS support, and the Ares I-X rocket that ultimately did not replace the shuttle as planned. He was on the team that made possible the shuttle program's last flight of Atlantis in July 2011.

"Mark’s extensive operations experience uniquely qualifies him for this position, especially as the program transitions from the design, development, test and evaluation phase toward operational flights," Chilton said.

Artemis I will include an uncrewed, Lockheed Martin-built Orion capsule that will fly to the moon, orbit it, then return back to Earth. Artemis II will run the same test but with astronauts, while Artemis III will eventually see two Americans set foot on the surface no earlier than 2025.

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Chilton's full memo:

Team,

Over the last several years it’s been enlightening to hear from many of you what your inspiration was for joining our Space and Launch team.  I couldn’t agree more: we have the most interesting and diverse portfolio in the industry – from a powerful rocket to small satellites and everything in between. I’ve come to realize, though, what really stands out are the stories of incredible and lifelong careers benefitting humanity in ways that can only be achieved by the work we do in space.

John Vollmer is someone who has shown us what a 35-year Boeing career looks like. He started out with Rockwell as a systems engineer on the Space Shuttle Program, was instrumental in the design and development of the International Space Station, helped sustain the orbiting laboratory for nearly two decades as ISS chief engineer, and led the CST-100 Starliner team during a pivotal time.

What I’ve always admired about John is his belief that when we start with engineering excellence, and focus on safety and quality, the rest will fall into place. Throughout his distinguished career, I’ve had the opportunity to witness that approach first hand, which is why it was hard to accept his request to retire. Thankfully, John has offered to stay on board as an advisor to the program through Starliner’s OFT-2 mission. This transition period will enable shared learning and strengthens program continuity.

With that, I am pleased to announce that we’ve selected Mark Nappi to lead the Starliner team as vice president and program manager, effective March 4. Mark most recently served as program director of Artemis 1 for the Space Launch System program – leading all aspects from design to test to final operations at Kennedy Space Center. In that role, he was responsible for assembling the workforce, establishing operations processes, commencing production of the Core Stage, performing a full-flight duration hot fire test, and ensuring readiness for the upcoming wet dress rehearsal and launch of SLS on the Artemis 1 mission.

Prior to that, Mark led two major contracts at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center – first with United Space Alliance then with Vencore – so this role will be a homecoming of sorts for him and his family. Most notably, Mark was vice president of USA’s Florida operations as well as the Florida site executive responsible for executing the Space Shuttle Program, Ares I-X processing and International Space Station support. He also led space shuttle vehicle operations, which included the lead up to and final flight of the orbiter, Atlantis. Mark’s extensive operations experience uniquely qualifies him for this position, especially as the program transitions from the Design, Development, Test and Evaluation phase toward operational flights.

Please join me in thanking John for his many contributions to our nation’s space programs and congratulating him on his remarkable career, and welcoming Mark to the Starliner team.

Jim

Contact Emre Kelly at aekelly@floridatoday.com or 321-242-3715. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @EmreKelly.