Aircraft manufacturer Spirit AeroSystems President and CEO Thomas Gentile has resigned from his post, effective Sept. 30.
Spirit AeroSystems Board of Directors member Patrick Shanahan was named as interim president and CEO on Monday, the company said in an announcement. Shanahan has served on the board since November 2021.
Shanahan is a former Boeing executive with three decades at the company, including as SVP of supply chain and operations. He also served as the deputy secretary of defense under the Trump administration.
“Spirit plays a vital role in the aerospace industry and is well-positioned to fulfill the growing demand in this important market,” said Board Chair Robert Johnson. “Pat is a seasoned executive with nearly four decades of commercial and defense aerospace leadership and senior Department of Defense experience, and he has a valuable customer perspective."
The company's board will conduct a search to find a new permanent CEO.
Gentile served as CEO of Spirit for just over seven years, according to a March SEC filing. He will serve as a consultant to the company for three months to ensure a smooth leadership transition, the company said.
Spirit has had a shaky few months under Gentile's leadership. Boeing, one of its top customers, was forced to send the aircraft components maker cash and manufacturing resources in the spring after Spirit notified the company of quality issues with the rear fuselage section of certain aircraft.
The contract manufacturer hit more production snags in August, when quality issues were again detected on fuselage parts for some 737 planes, causing more delays for Boeing.
And on the labor front, Spirit was one of many companies that dealt with the hot union summer.
The Boeing supplier suspended production for several days in June after workers went on strike following weeks of fruitless labor negotiations. The company and a chapter of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers ratified a new contract that included wage increases and no mandatory overtime on weekends.
