Astronaut Guion Bluford Jr. resigns from NASA to join engineering and computer firm

Col. Guion S. Bluford Jr., who made history as the first Black American astronaut to travel in space (JET, Sept. 5, 1983), is leaving the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and retiring from the U.S. Air Force to join an engineering and computer software company.

Bluford, 50, who is a four-time shuttle veteran, will join NYMA Inc. in Greenbelt, Md., this month as vice president and general manager of the company's Engineering Services Division.

NYMA provides engineering and software support services to the Federal Aviation Administration, the Justice Department, the Department of Defense and NASA.

"I feel very honored to have served as a NASA astronaut and to have contributed to the success of the Space Shuttle program," said Bluford. "I will miss working with the people at JSC (Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center) and the team spirit and esprit de corps that comes from flying crew members in space."

"Guy will be missed, but he leaves a legacy that is important to NASA and to the nation," said David C. Leestma, director of flight crew operations. "There are many young people today who have been inspired to pursue careers in science and engineering because of his achievements."