BLAME for the loss of the shuttle and its seven crew in February rests with NASA’s management culture. These failings extended to or even emanated from NASA chief Sean O’Keefe, says the final report of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB), published this week.
In one of its sharpest criticisms, the CAIB says that time pressure imposed by O’Keefe to appease Congress played a significant role in causing managers lower down the line to downplay risks and sweep aside clear warning signs. In particular, pressure to complete the core of the International Space Station by February 2004 left NASA engineers…
