Former NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe is stepping down as chief executive of Airbus Group’s Herndon, Va.-based North American unit in March “to fully address ongoing medical issues due to injuries sustained in a 2010 aircraft accident in Alaska,” the European conglomerate announced Jan. 7.
O’Keefe and his son survived the Aug. 9, 2010 plane crash that killed former U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) and four others.
O’Keefe ran NASA from 2001 to 2005 and joined the former EADS North America in late 2009 after a three-year stint as Louisiana State University chancellor.
O’Keefe, 57, will be succeeded by Allan McArtor, 71,the former Federal Aviation Administrator chief who joined Airbus in 2001.
