posted 11-07-2005 02:37 PM               

NASA Names Former Astronaut New Johnson Center Director

Michael L. Coats has been named director of NASA's Johnson Space Center. Coats is a former astronaut, and he currently is vice president of Lockheed Martin Astronautics in Denver. He will become the ninth person to serve as director in the center's 44-year history.

"Mike Coats brings a perfect blend of experience to his new role as the head of the nation's primary center for human spaceflight development and operations," said NASA Administrator Michael Griffin. "As a former pilot and astronaut, and a long-time aerospace industry executive, he knows what our next generation of manned spacecraft must be able to do, and he knows what it takes to produce them. I'm delighted to welcome Mike back home to NASA."

Coats joined NASA in 1978 as a member of the first astronaut class specifically selected to fly the space shuttle. He flew three shuttle missions, the first as pilot for the maiden flight of Discovery in 1984. He commanded two subsequent shuttle missions, logging a total of more than 463 hours in space. Before joining NASA he was a distinguished U.S. Navy aviator. He logged more than 5,000 hours of flight time in 28 different types of aircraft. He retired from NASA and the Navy in August 1991.

"I look forward to returning to the Johnson Space Center, and I am honored by the trust Mike Griffin has shown in me," Coats said. "We will embrace the challenge of the new Constellation program that will take us first to the moon, and then on to Mars. At the same time, the contributions of the space shuttle and international space station will be critical steps in that journey and we remain committed to their success."

Coats replaces Jefferson D. Howell, Jr., who is on assignment as a visiting professor to the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.

posted 11-16-2012 11:17 AM               

NASA Announces Leadership Change at Johnson

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden announced a leadership change today for the agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Ellen Ochoa will succeed Michael Coats as Johnson's center director when Coats retires at the end of the year. Ochoa has served as Johnson's deputy director since September 2007.

"I want to thank Mike for his years of leadership and dedicated service at NASA, most recently while guiding Johnson through pivotal times for the center," said Bolden. "I am especially sad to see Mike leave, as he and I have been close friends and allies since coming together in the summer of 1964 as new plebes in the great Naval Academy Class of 1968."

"He is a true patriot and an American hero, and we wish him and his lovely wife, Diane, the very best. His expertise and dedication will be sorely missed, not only at JSC, but across the entire agency," Bolden said.

Coats, a former astronaut, became JSC's 10th director in November 2005. He is concluding a 44-year career that includes 20 years with NASA, including seven as center director. He is a retired U.S. Navy captain.

Coats' NASA career began in 1978 when he earned a spot in the first astronaut class specifically selected to fly the space shuttle. He flew three shuttle missions, the first as pilot for the maiden flight of Discovery in 1984. He commanded two subsequent shuttle missions, logging more than 463 hours in space.