Search for New Chief of NASA Intensifies as Beggs Quits Post

James M. Beggs resigned Tuesday as NASA administrator, telling President Reagan he had “no alternative” because the Challenger disaster created “a very different situation” from that existing last December when he took a leave of absence to fight criminal charges unrelated to the space agency.

Beggs is under indictment for charges related to his activities as a General Dynamics Corp. executive before he joined NASA. And his resignation clears the way for the White House to install new leadership at a time when the agency is buffeted by revelations of questionable decision-making in the Challenger launch and troubled by nasty internal bureaucratic wrangling.

White House aides already have prepared a list of potential replacements, with previous experience at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration the foremost asset being sought in a new leader for the agency, according to Administration and congressional sources.

Former Officials

Two ex-NASA officials who are thought to be candidates are former Administrator Thomas O. Paine, who directed the agency at the time of the early Apollo moon landings, and retired Lt. Gen. Samuel C. Phillips, who took over the moon landing project after a 1967 fire killed three astronauts in a training accident on the launch pad.

Also mentioned are former astronaut Frank Borman, now chairman of troubled Eastern Airlines, Lt. Gen. James A. Abrahamson, a former NASA official who now heads Reagan’s “Star Wars” research program, and James C. Fletcher, who headed the agency when the shuttle program was launched.

William R. Graham, now acting administrator, is not expected to get the job, several Administration and congressional sources said.

Sen. Jake Garn (R-Utah), who flew on a shuttle mission last year and heads the subcommittee handling NASA appropriations, and Sen. John Glenn (D-Ohio), the first U.S. astronaut to orbit the Earth, are among key members of Congress who have made clear to top White House aides that Reagan should look beyond Graham and find a “white knight” who could command immediate respect and help restore the beleaguered agency’s morale and public standing, several sources said.

Graham, a former California engineering consultant and White House disarmament adviser, was named deputy administrator over Beggs’ objection just before the former General Dynamics executive was indicted in Los Angeles Dec. 2 on criminal counts of conspiracy and wrongfully charging cost overruns on defense contracts.

Since the shuttle disaster Jan. 28, differences between the two have come into public view. This week, for instance, Beggs told the Wall Street Journal that Graham “is not qualified . . . read his resume.” Graham countered by telling the Journal that he was providing strong leadership during “this difficult period” and suggesting that decisions made during Beggs’ tenure had influenced the chain of events leading to the explosion.

Contents of Letter

Beggs’ six-paragraph letter, addressed to the President and hand-delivered to the White House by an aide, was not immediately made public, but a copy was obtained by The Times. In it, the 60-year-old Beggs made no mention of Graham and attached no conditions to his resignation.

“The tragic events of the last several weeks have resulted in a very different situation from that in December, 1985, when you granted me leave,” Beggs wrote Reagan.

“Moreover, while I firmly believe the charges which led to my taking a leave . . . are improper and baseless, the fact remains that . . . I have no alternative except to defend myself vigorously against them,” Beggs said. “It now appears that this will take longer than I at first anticipated. However, I am confident of my ultimate vindication.”

Beggs had headed the agency since mid-1981 and during his tenure was a strong promoter not only of the shuttle program but of such futuristic plans as the orbiting space station scheduled to be built within the next decade.

Sen. Ernest F. Hollings (D-S.C.), who earlier called for the departure of both Beggs and Graham, said installation of a new administrator at the space agency is the first step required on the way to recovery from the Challenger tragedy.