NASA NAMES ASSISTANT DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR

NASA Deputy Administrator Frederick Gregory today announced the appointment of Suzanne E. Hilding as Assistant Deputy Administrator, Internal Operations & Integration, Office of the Deputy Administrator.

Hilding previously served as Special Assistant to the Deputy Assistant Administrator and as the agency's Office of Space Flight (OSF) Reorganization Project Manager. Hilding was the OSF Space Shuttle Upgrades Manager from February 2001 through April 2002. She served as the Executive Director of the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel from June 1999 through February 2001.

"With her proven leadership ability, extensive knowledge of NASA's strategic goals, operational concepts, and policies, as well as the inner workings of NASA Headquarters, Suzanne will provide key direction and management for diverse agency programs," Gregory said. "She is a proven leader, and she will help guide NASA's implementation of the agency's mission," he said.

Hilding joined the space program with Boeing Aerospace Company at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in February 1984, serving as an Inertial Upper Stage integration and test engineer. She became a NASA employee in September 1985. Her first assignment was as an instrumentation engineer on the Controlled Ecological Life Support System project. She transferred to Space Shuttle Vehicle Engineering in July 1987 as a Data Processing System (DPS) Engineer. She was the DPS lead system engineer for Space Shuttle Atlantis, and later, the Space Shuttle Endeavour.

Hilding was promoted to Section Chief of the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) Avionics test and checkout team in April 1991. She served as Branch Chief, SSME Avionics, Remote Manipulator System, and KSC Avionics Test Set systems from December 1994 until October 1995, when she was selected for the position of Division Chief, Guidance, Digital, and Software Systems Division from October 1995 to December 1997.

Her Division was responsible for test, checkout, and launch preparations of the Guidance, Flight Controls, Digital Processing, Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) Avionics, and Remote Manipulator Systems on the Space Shuttle, as well as the Ground Software that is used to test Shuttle systems. She served as the Deputy Director (Acting) of Space Shuttle Processing at KSC from January 1998 through July 1998.

Hilding was assigned on extended temporary duty from KSC to NASA Headquarters in August 1999. She was assigned to the Office of Space Flight (OSF), where she was responsible for leading the OSF Core Capability Assessment activity.

Hilding has received numerous awards and commendations including a KSC Certificate of Commendation for significant contributions to the SSME Avionics System; a NASA Group Achievement Award for her efforts on the CELSS Team; a Johnson Space Center (JSC) Group Achievement Award for her efforts on the Space Shuttle Endeavour Delivery Team; a JSC Group Achievement Award for her work on the Enhanced Multiplexer Demultiplexer Design Team; and a KSC Group Achievement Award for her activities on the Block II SSME Controller Team.

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