Boeing's chairman, Steve Mollenkopf, told employees there had been a "thorough and extensive search process over the last several months."
Ortberg, 64, has a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Iowa.
He began his career at Texas Instruments in 1983 and moved to Rockwell Collins four years later. He was president and CEO of the avionics firm for five years until it was acquired by RTX in 2018. Ortberg retired from RTX in 2021.
Airline bosses like Emirates' Tim Clark had called on Boeing to appoint someone with an engineering background, given the planemaker's well-documented quality-control problems in recent years.
Ortberg will also have to contend with supply-chain problems and achieving certification for new planes like the 777X and the 737 Max 10.
Wednesday's CEO announcement came at the same time as Boeing's quarterly earnings. The planemaker reported a net loss of $1.44 billion — worse than analysts' expectations.
Dave Calhoun announced his resignation in March.
Aaron Schwartz/NurPhoto/Getty Images
Calhoun announced his resignation in March, two months after the Alaska Airlines blowout. When a door plug came off a 737 Max in midair, the fact that the plane had been delivered just 66 days earlier suggested Boeing was to blame.
The incident prompted the Justice Department to revisit a 2021 deferred-prosecution agreement. This month Boeing pleaded guilty to one charge of conspiracy to defraud the US.
"Boeing has a tremendous and rich history as a leader and pioneer in our industry, and I'm committed to working together with the more than 170,000 dedicated employees of the company to continue that tradition, with safety and quality at the forefront," Ortberg said.
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