Lieutenant General Larry D. James, Ret. is the deputy director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He assumed his duties on Sep. 23, 2013, replacing retiring General Eugene Tattini, who had held the role for the previous 12 years. Prior to his current role, he served as the Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance, Headquarters USAF. Lt Gen James' prior command was the 14th Air Force and Joint Functional Component Command for Space from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. He has held numerous positions of leadership throughout the United States Air Force and has extensive experience with space issues.