Durcan takes over as CEO in wake of Appleton death

[February 04, 2012]  BOISE, Idaho (AP) -- The board of directors for Micron Technology Inc. has named president and chief operating officer Mark Durcan as the company's interim chief executive officer.

The move comes hours after CEO and Chairman Steve Appleton died in a plane crash at the Boise Airport. Appleton was flying an experimental plane Friday morning and crashed moments after takeoff.

Micron officials say the board of directors will meet this weekend to name a permanent CEO.

Durcan is the second ranking executive at the memory chip maker. Last week he announced his intention to step down in August.

He called Appleton a true friend who will be missed by everyone in the Micron community.

Durcan joined Micron in 1984, rose through the engineering ranks and was named COO in 2006 and president in 2007.

[Associated Press]

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