SPACE SYMPOSIUM SPEAKERS

John Elbon

John Elbon

Interim Chief Executive Officer
United Launch Alliance

John Elbon is the interim chief executive officer for United Launch Alliance (ULA). In this role, he is the principal strategic leader of the organization and oversees all business management and operations. Elbon previously served as ULA’s chief operating officer.

Prior to joining ULA in May 2018, Elbon served as vice president and general manager, Space Exploration, a division of Boeing Defense, Space & Security at The Boeing Company. He was responsible for the strategic direction of Boeing’s civil space programs, and support of NASA programs such as the International Space Station (ISS), Commercial Crew Development program, and the Space Launch System.

Previously, he served as vice president and program manager for Boeing’s Commercial Programs. In this position, Elbon managed Boeing’s efforts on NASA’s Commercial Crew Space Act Agreements, including the first two phases of the Commercial Crew Development program. He has leveraged innovations and capabilities from across Boeing in the development of crew transportation systems to support NASA and commercial customers in accessing destinations in Low Earth Orbit.

During his 35-year career at Boeing, he has also served as the vice president of Systems Integration for the Army’s Future Combat Systems, and the Boeing program manager for several NASA programs including Constellation, ISS, and the Checkout, Assembly & Payload Processing Services (CAPPS) contract at Kennedy Space Center.

As vice president and program manager of ISS, Elbon led Boeing in its role as prime integrating contractor for NASA’s ISS contract to design, develop, test, launch and operate this orbiting facility. The multi-billion dollar contract required the coordination of several thousand Boeing employees in five major locations as well as subcontractors and suppliers located in 23 states across the United States.

He holds a Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

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