Storm clouds gather over Boeing’s St. Louis headquarters. (Michael Marrow/Breaking Defense)
WASHINGTON — Steve Nordlund, who has led Boeing Defense’s fighter jet business for the last two years, is retiring, Breaking Defense has learned.
Nordlund, whose official title is vice president and general manager of Air Dominance, will be replaced by Dan Gillian, currently the vice president of Mobility, Surveillance & Bombers. Gillian, in turn, will be replaced by Jamie Burgess, Boeing Defense’s current vice president for program management.
A Boeing spokesperson confirmed the moves in response to an inquiry from Breaking Defense but declined further comment.
Before taking over the air dominance unit, Nordlund spent a year running the company’s Phantom Works unit; that combined experience lined up with Boeing’s attempt to win the US Air Force’s Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) effort, which is now facing budgetary headwinds from the service. Overall, he spent 15 years at Boeing, having come over when the aerospace giant purchased drone firm Insitu.
His exit comes amidst the backdrop of uncertainty at Boeing. New CEO Kelly Ortberg announced in October plans to lay off roughly 10 percent of the company as he seeks to get the aerospace giant back on track, and the company’s defense sector remains without a full-time leader since Ted Colbert was ousted in September. On the whole, the defense unit has logged $3.2 billion in charges on the year.
