
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.
After nearly 12 years leading the United Launch Alliance (ULA), its chief Tory Bruno is stepping down from the U.S. rocket launch provider to pursue "another opportunity," the company announced this week.
What's that new opportunity? We're not sure yet, but it's guaranteed to be "Something interesting," Bruno wrote on social media after the Dec. 22 announcement.
Bruno took the reigns as ULA president and CEO in August 2014, overseeing the company, a collaboration between Lockheed Martin and Boeing, as it launched its Atlas V rockets and retired its Delta rocket family. He oversaw the development of new booster, the Vulcan Centaur rocket, which ULA plans to use as a workhorse vehicle.
During Bruno's term, ULA fought to contend with launch competitor SpaceX, which successfully landed a Falcon 9 booster for the first time in 2015 to lower costs through reusability. SpaceX now regularly launches and lands Falcon 9 rockets and has flown over 160 times this year. ULA eventually hopes to recover and reuse only part of the Vulcan rocket, its BE-4 first stage engines built by Blue Origin.
"It has been a great privilege to lead ULA through its transformation and to bring Vulcan into service. My work here is now complete and I will be cheering ULA on," Bruno wrote on X.
"Finished the mission I came to do," he added. "Great people. Great rocket. New things coming."
In a statement, Robert Lightfoot and Kay Sears, the ULA board chairs for Lockheed Martin and Boeing, respectively, thanked Bruno for over a decade of service.
"We are grateful for Tory’s service to ULA and the country, and we thank him for his leadership," Lightfoot and Sears wrote in the statement.
ULA's board has appointed Boeing veteran John Elbon as interim CEO as the search for a new leader begins.
"We have the greatest confidence in John to continue strengthening ULA’s momentum while the board proceeds with finding the next leader of ULA," Lihtfoot and Sears wrote.
LATEST POSTS
- 1
74 suicide warnings and 243 mentions of hanging: What ChatGPT said to a suicidal teen - 2
Blue Origin launches huge rocket carrying twin NASA spacecraft to Mars - 3
Industrial zone damaged in Negev, falls in Sharon area after Iran fires missiles towards Israel - 4
Burkina Faso must 'forget' about democracy, military leader says - 5
Far-right AfD invited back to Munich Security Conference in 2026
Make your choice for the bird that catches your heart!
Europe's powerful Ariane 6 rocket launches Sentinel-1D Earth-observation satellite to orbit (video)
Rio Tinto resumes operations at three Pilbara port terminals after cyclone Narelle
State asks High Court to reject challenge to anti-UNRWA laws ahead of Monday hearing
UN chief calls on Yemen's Houthi rebels to free all UN detainees
A Texas GOP congressman is retiring. Trump just endorsed his identical twin to replace him.
Journeys That could only be described as epic: Delightful Voyage Lines All over the Planet
Ukraine proved this drone-killer works. Now, the West is giving it a shot.
From Iran to Israel: An Iranian volunteer’s unlikely stand in wartime












