Austal has announced the appointment of Rusty Murdaugh as President of Austal USA, effective 9th September 2021.
Mr Murdaugh, a veteran of the defence industry in the United States, joined Austal USA in 2017 as Chief Financial Officer, and has been serving as interim President of the Company since February 2021.
During his time as interim president, Murdaugh oversaw the addition of steel shipbuilding to the Austal USA manufacturing operations and the company’s facility expansion in Mobile by acquiring additional waterfront and services capability on the Mobile River.
Prior to joining Austal, he held leadership positions with Esterline Corporation, Avnet, United Technologies (formerly Goodrich), and Honeywell.
Austal CEO Paddy Gregg congratulated Mr Murdaugh on his appointment.
“Rusty has overseen a number of significant, positive developments at Austal USA in a short period of time, including the start of construction of new infrastructure to enable steel shipbuilding; and new contracts that position the company exceptionally well for further growth,” Mr Gregg said.
“I congratulate him on his appointment and look forward to working with him to achieve further success in the US and international markets.”
Mr Murdaugh said he was honoured to be selected ‘to lead this great company’.
“I am excited about the opportunity to lead the world’s finest shipbuilders, and I’m looking forward to the growth ahead in the coming years as we win new shipbuilding and ship maintenance contracts,” he stated.
