Boeing taps veteran insider Parker to lead its defense and space unit

(Reuters) -Boeing on Tuesday named veteran insider Stephen Parker as the president and CEO of its defense and space unit, as part of a broad overhaul by CEO Kelly Ortberg to rebuild its reputation, boost production and stabilize finances.

Parker, who has been with the U.S. planemaker for 37 years, was already the interim head of the business unit since September after the exit of former chief Ted Colbert in the first major leadership shake-up under Ortberg.

The defense, space and security unit, one of Boeing's three core businesses, has racked up billions in losses, mainly due to cost overruns on fixed-price contracts, company executives have said.

Its space business has faced major setbacks, including NASA's decision last year to return the Starliner capsule without astronauts after years of delays and technical issues.

"Under Steve's leadership, our defense business has stabilized its operations, improved program execution and strengthened relationships with our customers," Ortberg said.

The company had on Monday also named former Lockheed Martin finance chief Jesus 'Jay' Malave as its new CFO, effective Aug. 15.

(Reporting by Shivansh Tiwary in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)