Deirdre Healey

Deirdre Healey is the director of the Office of Safety and Mission Assurance (OSMA) Mission Support Division at NASA Headquarters. In this position, she leads Safety and Mission Assurance (SMA) activities in support of NASA's spacecraft (including the International Space Station and space hardware developed for exploration programs and commercial space activities), science payloads, expendable launch vehicles and aeronautics programs. In addition, she provides OSMA’s primary interface with the NASA mission directorates, the Office of the Chief Technologist and the center SMA organizations.

Previously, Healey supported SMA activities for the Human Exploration and Operations Exploration Systems Directorate where she led efforts to incorporate SMA policies and tenets into the agency’s various human space flight programs including Orion, the Space Launch System and the new Commercial Crew Program.

Healey has more than 26 years of experience in space systems SMA, program management, engineering, operations and policy. Prior to joining NASA, she led development and operations of national and international space systems in the U.S. Air Force. She held various roles including program manager for the Inertial Upper Stage Rocket Booster Program, director of Titan Program Operations and Integration, deputy program manager for Launch Projects at Cape Canaveral Air Station, chief of the International Policy Branch for United States Strategic Command, and technical director for requirements at the Air Force Satellite Control Network. In addition, she served on various Mishap Investigation Boards including the president-commissioned Launch Broad Area Review and the Titan IVA-20 Accident Investigation Board.

Healey has a master's degree in government from Harvard University and a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Illinois.