RIP Steve Appleton

[mysfit]

Died in a plane crash this morning in his experimental craft.

For those not familiar with the Boise area and high tech Appleton was the CEO of Micron, the largest American DRAM manufacturer which has been diversifying product lines.

He has donated millions of dollars to BSU, for sports, engineering and business.

He will be missed.

Micron CEO Steve Appleton dies in plane crash | KTVB.COM Boise

 

[mysfit]

STATEMENT FROM BOISE STATE PRESIDENT BOB KUSTRA ON STEVE APPLETON

“Boise State lost one of its own today. A former Bronco tennis player who never forgot his alma mater, Steve graduated in business and went on to lead one of the nation’s premier companies and enrich in so many ways the community he called home. He played a critical role in transforming Boise State into a research university serving the tech economy of Idaho. I valued his friendship, his generous support, and especially the advice and counsel he provided me personally as we navigated our way through the recent recession. Our thoughts and prayers are with Dalynn, his children and his family as well as his colleagues at Micron.”

-- President Bob Kustra, Boise State University


BOISE STATE BACKGROUND ON STEVE APPLETON

Steve Appleton came to Boise State University in 1978 on a tennis scholarship. He was captain of the tennis team his senior year and won the Big Sky doubles championship. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business management in 1982. In 2001, he received the university’s prestigious Silver Medallion award for his service to the university and in May 2007 he was awarded an honorary doctorate.

Appleton served as co-chair of the university’s most recent comprehensive fundraising campaign for scholarships, programs and buildings. He also was a Boise State University Foundation board member from 1995-2002 and was a lifetime Chaffee Guild member.

He was instrumental in the development of Boise State’s College of Engineering, which offered its first classes in 1996, and construction of the Appleton Tennis Complex on the Boise State campus. His support has been invaluable to both the College of Business and Economics and the College of Engineering.

In 1999, he established the Micron Foundation, which has led to several generous donations to Boise State programs and initiatives, including the Micron Business and Economics Building at the corner of University and Capitol, slated to open later this year, and doctoral programs in the departments of Materials Science and Engineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering.

..

 

[potzer25]

MU stopped trading. I hope they had a good succession plan; seems likely, since this isn't his first plane crash. He's been CEO for a long time, though, so I wonder how much of a loss this will be for Micron.

 

[SeeYouNT]

Died in a plane crash this morning in his experimental craft.

For those not familiar with the Boise area and high tech Appleton was the CEO of Micron, the largest American DRAM manufacturer which has been diversifying product lines.

He has donated millions of dollars to BSU, for sports, engineering and business.

He will be missed.

Micron CEO Steve Appleton dies in plane crash | KTVB.COM Boise

:nonod:

 

[Papalou]

sad news indeed RIP

 

[mysfit]

I think it will be a pretty significant loss for Micron.

He still ruled it pretty tightly.

Steve Appleton personified Micron Technology Inc. He was more than its public face — he was its czar.

"It was ruled by one guy," said Mike Howard, a semiconductor analyst in Boise for IHS iSuppli and a former Micron employee. If he said the company was going to do something, everyone fell in line, Howard said.

Appleton, the chairman and CEO of Micron Technology, was killed shortly before 9 a.m. Friday in a plane crash at the Boise airport. He was 51.

"We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Appleton, Micron Chairman and CEO, passed away this morning in a small plane accident in Boise," the company's board of directors said in a news release. "Our hearts go out to his wife, Dalynn, his children and his family during this tragic time."

"Steve's passion and energy left an indelible mark on Micron, the Idaho community and the technology industry at large."

Appleton brought a deep history to the computer chip business and has been a driving force in consolidation that has surrounded the business, Howard said.

He was also a risk-taker. Micron's board was tolerant of Appleton's penchant for risky hobbies, said Parker. "Steve's hobby of flying airplanes is part of who he is, of his competitive and dynamic nature, " said Dave Parker, a Micron spokesman, in 2004, after Appleton was injured in another plane crash.

"It translates well into his job as CEO of a major semiconductor memory company and the challenges that come with that responsibility," Parker said then. "The board understands this."

One question is what Appleton's death will mean to the future of Micron.

Appleton's death came just one week after Micron's No. 2 executive, Mark Durcan, 50, announced that he would step down as resident and chief operating officer in August after 28 years with the company. Mark W. Adams, Micron's vice president of worldwide sales, was named to succeed Durcan. He has an MBA from Harvard.

Appleton led the company through its downsizing in recent years. Amid continuing losses, Micron ended memory-chip manufacturing in Boise in 2009. The company now employs more than 5,000 people in Boise, half the number it had a decade ago.

Trading in Micron's stock was halted Thursday on the Nasdaq exchange.

Read more here: IMPACT ON MICRON: Appleton was the company's czar | Micron Technology | Idaho Statesman

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

sad to hear, RIP

 

[mysfit]

Based on witness reports who saw the accident the craft banked sharply then stalled and crashed upside down.

Don't know what issue he had which led him to turn the plane, he was an experienced pilot who was well aware that such a maneuver could lead to a stall (according to other pilots who knew him).

Tough times in Boise.