OREANDA-NEWS. Two Lockheed Martin leaders have left their positions at the company following appointments by the U.S. Senate to new roles in the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs.

Ryan McCarthy, formerly vice president of F-35 Sustainment, was confirmed as undersecretary of the Army and appointed as acting secretary of the Army. Jim Byrne, formerly Lockheed Martin’s chief privacy officer and associate general counsel, was confirmed as general counsel for the Department of Veterans Affairs. Both McCarthy and Byrne resigned from Lockheed Martin immediately after being appointed.

McCarthy joined the company in 2011 as a vice president in Corporate Business Development, and transitioned to the F-35 team in 2013. Previously, he was a special assistant to then-Defense Secretary Robert Gates, he worked in the U.S. House of Representatives and he also served in Afghanistan as an Army officer.

Byrne joined the Lockheed Martin legal team in 2008 after nearly 25 years of professional experience in the military and federal government, including several years as a federal narcotics prosecutor and deployed Marine infantry officer.

Ryan and Jim are exceptional professionals and we appreciate the contributions they made to our company’s success as valued members of the Lockheed Martin leadership team. We’re proud that they will bring their steadfast leadership and expertise to these critically important roles in the U.S. government.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 97,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services.