Astra chief engineer Benjamin Lyon resigns from rocket builder

Beleaguered rocket-builder Astra is losing its highly touted chief engineer, Benjamin Lyon, the company said in a securities filing Friday.

Lyon resigned from his role as Astra’s chief engineer and executive vice president of operations and engineering on Monday, the company said. The company said he is leaving to pursue another opportunity and that his last day is expected to be Dec. 27.

Shares of Astra were little changed in pre-market trading, from its previous close of 52 cents a share.

Lyon joined Astra in February 2021 from Apple, where he had worked in development for products including the iPhone and Mac.

But Astra is facing an uphill battle after the company pivoted away from its Rocket 3.3 vehicle after a mid-flight failure, and decided to pause launches to build a larger, upgraded rocket. The company announced a layoff of 16% of its workforce on Nov. 11, as it works to trim operating expenses as it moves forward with development work.

Astra stock is down 92% this year as of Thursday’s close. The company received a de-listing warning from the Nasdaq in October after its stock fell below $1 a share. The company has until April to lift the stock price back above the level.