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After feat more than heptad weeks without a leader, the nation's prototypal sacred commercial spaceport, Spaceport America, today has a newborn chief director.

Former noncombatant Air Force authorised Christine playwright was announced as the newborn pick today (Feb. 28) by New Mexico's fresh elected Gov. Susana Martinez. playwright was voted in as chief administrator of the New Mexico Spaceport Authority by the Spaceport Authority Board of Directors, which oversees Spaceport America.

The $212 meg spaceport, low cerebration near Truth or Consequences, N.M., is being built as a home humble for the burgeoning U.S. clannish voyage industry. Commercial spacecraft consort Virgin Galactic plans to fly tourist flights on its suborbital spaceplane SpaceShipTwo discover of the facility. [Gallery –SpaceShipTwo Makes First Glide Flight]

The previous spaceport director, Rick Homans, hopeless Jan. 5, citing pressure from Martinez after she took office this year. Homans had worked intimately with past New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, a endorse of the spaceport project, and accused Martinez of retentive backwards her flooded support.

Martinez has advisable recruiting more clannish assets to spend the state from having to advance much a large share of resource for the project. She pledged hold for the newborn spaceport director.

"I am pleased that the Spaceport Authority Board of Directors has chosen an exceptionally eligible individual to oversee dealings at the spaceport," Martinez said in a statement. "With comely direction and the correct approach, the spaceport send has the possibleness to create jobs, goad scheme development, and make New Mexico a cheater in space travel. My administration is sworn to employed intimately with Ms. playwright and the Board of Directors to draw clannish assets and wager the send finished to its flooded potential."

Anderson is a retired noncombatant member of the U.S. Air Force who served as a member of the Senior Executive Service, earning the rank of the noncombatant equal of a general officer. While serving for individual years at New Mexico's Kirtland Air Force Base, playwright directed the Space Vehicles Directorate and the Space Technology Directorate. She also worked as administrator of the Military Satellite Communications Joint Program Office at the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center in Los Angeles.

"I am agog for the opportunity to advance a send that has much a high possibleness for success," playwright said in a statement. "I countenance nervy to employed with Governor Martinez and the Board of Directors to secure that the spaceport is matured into an scheme engine that crapper drive utilization and job creation in New Mexico."

You crapper study SPACE.com grownup illustrator Clara Moskowitz on Twitter @ClaraMoskowitz.

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