Oak Ridge, TN – Todd Ailes will take over as CNS’s new president and chief executive officer on July 1, replacing Rich Tighe, who is leaving CNS after nearly 4 strong years leading the company to serve as the project director for Bechtel’s Sentinel project in Utah. CNS manages and operates the Y-12 National Security Complex for the National Nuclear Security Administration.
Ailes has more than 35 years of nuclear production, weapons manufacturing, and high-hazard operations experience, and he has served as CNS’s chief operating officer since July 2025. His stint as COO began his second stretch with CNS. He previously spent 15 years at the Pantex Plant as the vice president of plant operations and site manager, overseeing daily work at the plant for CNS.
Ailes also served as the project manager for the Pueblo Chemical Agent–Destruction Pilot Plant from 2021 to 2025, supervising completion of a project to destroy the site’s stockpile of chemical weapons. Earlier in his career, Ailes also spent 5 years at the Kansas City National Security Campus.
A Navy veteran and a Bechtel principal vice president, Ailes has an A.S. degree in nuclear technologies from Regents College, a B.S. in human resources management from New School University, and an M.S. in business administration from the University of Missouri.
Tighe, a Bechtel senior vice president, served as CNS’s president and CEO since September 2022, overseeing the separation of Pantex from CNS’s contract, delivering on key infrastructure projects, as well as achieving an impeccable record in meeting all weapons, global security, and naval reactors deliverables for the government. During his tenure, CNS achieved its strongest safety performance since taking over the Y-12 management and operating contract in 2014.