Amid questions about leadership, NASA is “close” to making a key hire

Enlarge / NASA chief Jim Bridenstine has been looking for a new Associate Administrator for human spaceflight. (credit: NASA)

Nearly two months have now passed since NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine essentially fired Bill Gerstenmaier, the agency's chief of human spaceflight. Since then, Bridenstine has been winnowing a field of potential candidates for this critical position at NASA-a position which has oversight of all human spaceflight activities, including the space station, commercial crew, and Artemis lunar programs.

The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel on Friday urged Bridenstine to move quickly on finding a qualified replacement for the highly respected Gerstenmaier.

"It is important to recognize the sense of uncertainty that accompanies a vacuum in a key leadership position and address the need for stable and credible direction for the future," said panel chair Patricia Sanders during a meeting at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. "NASA personnel are continuing to move forward and progress on the programs of record. It's in their DNA. But having positive confirmation of the specific direction from a permanent leader is imperative. And a sense of uncertainty should not be allowed to linger during this critical time."

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