Boeing

Bob Kenney has joined Bell Helicopter as vice president of the Bell Boeing (NYSE: BA) V-22 Joint Program Office, replacing Mike Tkach, who was named vice president of Boeing's Army Rotorcraft Systems based in Philadelphia.

As the leader of the joint Bell Boeing Leadership team, Kenney will report directly to both John Lockard, Boeing, vice president and general manager, Naval Systems and John Bean, Bell Helicopter, sr. vice president, Government Business Unit. His appointment is part of the planned rotation of the V-22 Joint Program Management leadership between Boeing and Bell Helicopter and will be effective Feb. 28, 2005.

"Rotating this position between Boeing and Bell Helicopter illustrates the true jointness of the V-22 Program," said Lockard. "We look forward to a seamless transition as Bob helps the team remain focused on the challenges that lay ahead."

In the weeks ahead, Kenney will work closely with Tkach and the other V-22 joint program personnel to affect a smooth leadership transition. It is Bell Boeing's intention to announce the selection for the deputy position in the near future. John Buyers, current V-22 program deputy director, will remain in the joint program office reporting to Kenney until he can transition those responsibilities.

"We are very fortunate to get Bob Kenney on our team," said John Bean, Bell sr. vice president. "He is an enormously talented professional who brings over 30 years of aerospace experience to help us take the V-22 to full rate production."

Kenney most recently was a vice president at Sikorsky where he held key leadership positions over the past 25 years in program management, business development and marketing. He is retired from the US Marine Corps where he held the rank of Colonel with extensive Marine aviation experience piloting the CH-53, CH-46 and UH-1N aircraft. A Naval Academy graduate, Kenney also holds an MBA from the University of Bridgeport, a Program Management Development certificate from Harvard Business School, and a System Engineering Certificate from MIT, and is a certified EVMS instructor.

Bell Helicopter, a subsidiary of Textron Inc., is a $1.6 billion, leading producer of commercial and military helicopters, and the pioneer of the revolutionary tiltrotor aircraft. Globally recognized for customer service, innovation and superior quality, Bell's global workforce of over 7,500 employees serves customers flying Bell aircraft in over 120 countries.