Boeing board names Kelly Ortberg president, CEO

Boeing’s Board of Directors elected Robert K. “Kelly” Ortberg as the company’s president and CEO, succeeding Dave Calhoun. Ortberg will also serve on Boeing’s board of directors.

Earlier in 2024, Calhoun announced his intention to retire from the company, having served as president and CEO since January 2020 and as a Boeing Board of Directors member since 2009.

“Kelly has the right skills and experience to lead Boeing in its next chapter,” says Board Chair Steven Mollenkopf.

Ortberg, 64, brings more than 35 years of aerospace leadership to his position. He began his career in 1983 as an engineer at Texas Instruments, and then joined Rockwell Collins in 1987 as a program manager and held increasingly important leadership positions at the company prior to becoming its president and CEO in 2013. After five years leading Rockwell Collins, he steered the company’s integration with United Technologies and RTX until his retirement from RTX in 2021. He also served on the RTX board of directors and serves on the board of Aptiv PLC, a global technology company. He’s the former chair of the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) Board of Governors. https://www.boeing.com

Appointments

Takeshi (Tad) Yamamoto will serve as chairman of CNC machine tools and automation systems manufacturer Okuma America Corp. He served as its chairman and CEO since July 2009, after serving as its EVP and COO.

Jim King is promoted to the role of president, CEO, and COO for Okuma America Corp. King previously served as the company’s president & COO since 2011.

Okuma is positioning for growth, expanding its offering of machine tools and automation systems, and investing in new technologies and support centers around the world within the next decade.

Okuma Corp. President Dr. Atsushi Ieki says, “We are strategically preparing our organization by making investments in our people, our technologies, and our global footprint.” https://www.okuma.com

Global avionics engineering, system design, and installation firm L2 Aviation promoted Ismene Papayianis to engineering manager. Papayianis began her career as an aerospace engineer at Lockheed Martin, contributing to the F-16 program, advancing to Boeing, where she worked for the Global Transport & Executive Systems (GTES) team. Papayianis holds a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management. https://l2aviation.com

High-precision CNC machine tool company Mitsui Seiki USA Inc. named Terry Ritterbush director of sales East and Joseph Farkas director of sales West.

Since 2004, Ritterbush held service, applications, and sales positions at the company and most recently he was preventive maintenance manager.

Farkas brings 30-plus years of sales and business management experience in the manufacturing sector to the company. His most recent position prior to joining Mitsui Seiki was national sales manager – Workholding Solutions Group at Jergens Inc. https://www.mitsuiseiki.com