Boeing Official Joins Colleague at Kistler
By SHERRI CRUZ
Two former Orange County Boeing Co. executives now are helping Kirkland, Wash.-based Kistler Aerospace Corp. emerge from bankruptcy.
Wilbur Trafton, former head of Boeing’s Huntington Beach site and general manager of Expendable Launch Systems, resigned earlier this month.
He now is chief operating officer and president of Kistler, which is developing a reusable satellite rocket launcher.
Trafton joins former Boeing executive Randolph Brinkley, who recently signed on as Kistler’s chief executive. Brinkley was president of Boeing Satellite Systems in Seal Beach for two years and resigned in early 2003 amid troubles at the unit.
At Kistler, Trafton and Brinkley report to George Mueller, chairman and former chief executive. Mueller headed the Apollo man on the moon program.
“Kistler’s viability depends on its business with NASA,” said Marco Caceres, senior analyst with Teal Group Corp. in Fairfax, Va. “The two new hires probably would improve that. NASA deals better with mainstream companies.”
Trafton and Brinkley, former National Aeronautics Space Administration executives, also understand the way NASA is run and how to bid on contracts, he said.
Satellite News reported that Trafton and Brinkley came to Kistler as a package. Kistler was seeking approval of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Seattle last week for the employment contracts. Trafton could not be reached for comment.
Boeing has yet to announce Trafton’s replacement.
The former Boeing executives are taking a leap of faith at Kistler.
Founded in 1993, the company has yet to complete a rocket because of a shortage of investors. Early on, it raised $400 million. But money problems began as early as 1999. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2003.
