Takata, Company At Center Of Deadly Airbag Recall, Acquired By Key Safety Systems

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TOKYO (AP) - Takata Corp., the Japanese air bag maker embroiled in a massive recall, says the acquisition by U.S. mobility safety company Key Safety Systems has been completed, and the president resigned.

Takata President Shigehisa Takada said Thursday in a statement he has resigned as president and chairman, replaced by Yoichiro Nomura, chief financial officer, effective Wednesday.

Takata went into rehabilitation proceedings last year, slammed by the massive costs and sales damage from defective Takata air bag inflators, which can explode with too much force and spew shrapnel into a vehicle's drivers and passengers.

At least 22 deaths and more than 180 injuries have been linked to the defect. Some 50 million Takata air bag inflators have been recalled in the United States and millions more globally. But many repairs remain undone.