Joseph F.H. Cutrona, who led the nation's leading small package shipper group through transport deregulation, died Christmas Day at his home in Naples, Fla. He was 90.
Cutrona was executive director of NASSTRAC from 1978 to 1998, a period that included deregulation of transportation across all major freight modes. Cutrona represented the interests of small parcel and less-than-truckload (LTL) shippers in Washington as the industry struggled to adjust to the new realities of shipping in a post-deregulation world. Despite his duty to shippers, he was known to work and co-operate closely with carriers, believing shipper interests were best served through collaborative, rather than adversarial, relationships with carriers.
Cutrona also led NASSTRAC during an era that saw a dramatic broadening of the duties of transportation managers into areas of supply chain management.
A retired brigadier general, Cutrona came to the shipping industry after a long career in the U.S. Army that included service in World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.
