Tommy Holloway, Manager of the International Space Station Program Office at
NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, today announced plans to retire,
effective July 3. Holloway’s deputy, William H. Gerstenmaier, will take over
as program manager.
Holloway was named space station manager in April 1999 after serving as
manager of the Space Shuttle program for nearly four years. He began his
career with NASA in 1963, planning activities for Gemini and Apollo Flights
at what was then known as the Manned Spacecraft Center. He was a flight
director in Mission Control for early Space Shuttle flights and became chief
of the office in 1985.
In 1989, he was named assistant director for the Space Shuttle Program for
the Mission Operations Directorate. He served as Deputy Manager for Program
Integration with the Space Shuttle Program and Director of the Phase I
Program of Shuttle-Mir dockings before being named Space Shuttle program
manager in August 1995.
“Tommy’s been a fixture with NASA for nearly four decades and his
contributions to the agency’s human space flight program and the Johnson
Space Center are considerable,” said Frederick D. Gregory, Associate
Administrator for Space Flight at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “His
leadership helped set the standards of safety and success for our Space
Shuttle and International Space Station programs. I will miss him both
personally and professionally.”
Gerstenmaier first joined the Space Shuttle program in 1980, serving as
Propulsion Flight Controller. In 1992, he got his first managerial assignment
for the Orbital Maneuvering Vehicle project. Gerstenmaier was selected in
1995 to be the Operations Lead in Moscow for the first phase of the Shuttle-
Mir program, serving as lead for the ground control team.
In August 1998, he was named Space Shuttle Program Integration Manager and in
December 2000 he was selected as Deputy Manager of the International Space
Station Program. Since then, he’s been responsible for the day-to-day
management, development, integration and operations of the orbiting research
laboratory.
“Bill and Tommy have worked side-by-side for years on a variety of projects,
so I expect this to be a smooth and seamless transition,” added Gregory.
“Bill’s extensive program knowledge and experience will be a steadying force
as we move forward with the International Space Station construction and
research.”
Additional information about the Space Shuttle and International Space
Station is available on the Internet at:
