Home   Archived News   Press Releases 2002

Lockheed Martin’s Coffman to Become Chairman of NSTAC

Arlington, VA., August 12, 2002 - President Bush announced on August 9, 2002, that he is appointing Dr. Vance Coffman, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Lockheed Martin Corporation, as Chair of the President’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC). Dr. Coffman will replace Raytheon’s Daniel Burnham.

The President's NSTAC is composed of up to 30 Presidentially appointed industry leaders (usually chief executive officers).In its advisory role to the President, the NSTAC provides industry-based analyses and recommendations on a wide range of policy and technical issues related to telecommunications, information assurance
(IA), infrastructure protection, and other national security and emergency preparedness concerns.

Dr. Coffman was elected to his current Lockheed Martin position in April 1998 having served as CEO and Vice Chairman since August 1997.He has served in a series of elected Corporate leadership positions including President and Chief Operating Officer, and Executive Vice President.He previously was President and Chief Operating Officer of Lockheed Martin's Space & Strategic Missiles Sector. Prior to the merger of Lockheed and Martin Marietta Corporations in 1995, he served asExecutive Vice President of Lockheed Corporation. Earlier, he was President of the Space Systems Division of Lockheed Missiles & Space Company and a Vice President of the corporation.

In 1967 Dr. Coffman joined Lockheed's Space Systems Division as a guidance and control systems analyst. After leading the development of several major space programs and large ground data processing systems, he was appointed a vice president in 1985, division vice president and assistant general manager in 1987, and President of the Space Systems Division in 1988. While in this position, he was responsible for the Hubble Space Telescope, the MILSTAR satellite communications program; the Follow-on Early Warning System (now called Space Based Infrared System); and the Corporation's work on Iridium.

Dr. Coffman was elected to the Board of Directors of 3M in February 2002, Bristol-Myers Squibb in January 1998 and the United Negro College Fund in October 2001. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), and the Security Affairs Support Association. In 1989, he received Iowa State University's Professional Progress in Engineering Award and in 1999 the Distinguished Achievement Citation from Iowa State. He was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Aerospace Engineering from Embry-Riddle University, and an Honorary Doctor of Laws from Pepperdine University's George L. Graziadio School of Business and Management. He was elected a Fellow in both the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and in the American Astronautical Society.

Born in Kinross, Iowa, on April 3, 1944, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from Iowa State University and Master and Doctoral degrees in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Stanford University. He and his wife Arlene have two grown daughters.

Privacy Policy