Kenneth S. Reightler Jr.

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Kenneth Reightler
NASA astronaut
RankCaptain, USN
Time in space
13d 15h 36m
SelectionNASA Group 12 (1987)
MissionsSTS-48
STS-60
Mission insignia

Kenneth Stanley Reightler Jr. (born March 24, 1951) is a former NASA astronaut.[1]

Early life and education

Reightler was born March 24, 1951, in

Systems Management from University of Southern California
.

Experience

Reightler was designated a

NAS Patuxent River, Maryland
.

Upon graduation in 1978, he remained at the

TA-7 airplanes. In June 1981 Reightler was assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower as communications officer and carrier on-board delivery pilot, making two deployments to the Mediterranean Sea
.

Selected for postgraduate education, he attended the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School in

NAS Lemoore, California
. He then reported for duty at the Test Pilot School in March 1985, serving as the chief flight instructor until his selection for the astronaut program.

He has logged over 5,000 hours flying time in over 60 different types of aircraft.

NASA experience

Selected by NASA in June 1987, Reightler began a year of astronaut candidate training and became an astronaut in August 1988.

From September 12–18, 1991, he was the pilot on the crew of STS-48. This was the first Space Shuttle flight in support of "Mission to Planet Earth." During the five-day mission, the crew aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery successfully deployed the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS), designed to provide scientists with their first complete data set on the upper atmosphere's chemistry, winds and energy inputs. The crew also conducted numerous secondary experiments ranging from growing protein crystals, to studying how fluids and structures react in weightlessness. After 81 orbits of the Earth, Discovery landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California.[2]

More recently, Reightler served as pilot on

cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev, conducted a wide variety of biological, materials science, earth observation, and life science experiments. Following 130 orbits of the Earth, STS-60 landed at Kennedy Space Center on February 11, 1994.[3]

With the completion of his second mission, Reightler has logged over 327 hours in space.

His technical assignments to date have included: Chief of the Astronaut Office Space Station Branch; Chief of the Astronaut Office Mission Support Branch; Lead Spacecraft Communicator (

CAPCOM
); Lead Astronaut for flight software development and computer systems; Flight Crew Operations Directorate representative to the Program Requirements Control Board; weather coordinator for Space Shuttle launches and landings; Astronaut Office representative in the areas of ascent, entry, and aborts.

Corporate experience

In 1995, Reightler left NASA and retired from the U.S. Navy with the rank of

Mission Control Centers. Reightler was promoted to President of Lockheed Martin Space Operations in 2004. During this period, he was successful in creating internal partnerships within Lockheed Martin that resulted in winning several important NASA competitions including the NASA Crew Exploration Vehicle (Orion) contract. With this win, he took the opportunity to transfer within Lockheed Martin from technical services to development. In December 2006 Reightler became the Vice President, NASA Program Integration for the Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co., Human Space Flight. Reightler left Lockheed Martin in February 2011 to become the Vice President, Engineering Services for ATK
Space Systems Division. In August 2012 he left ATK to join the faculty of the U.S. Naval Academy. He continues to be an independent aerospace and business consultant to government and commercial organizations.

Academic experience

In 2012, Reightler was selected as the Robert A. Heinlein Distinguished Professor of Aerospace Engineering at the U.S. Naval Academy. Reightler became the inaugural Tig H. Krekel, Class of '75, Distinguished Chair in Space Science at the U.S. Naval Academy in 2017. He serves as a volunteer coach for the Naval Academy's Varsity Offshore Sailing Team and an Instructor-skipper and Officer in Tactical Command for the Offshore Sail Training Squadron.

Organizations

Associate Fellow, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics; Associate Fellow, Society of Experimental Test Pilots (SETP); Association of Space Explorers (ASE); U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association; American Astronautical Society.

Special honors

Barney In Outer Space", and the film, "To Be an Astronaut." He was a technical advisor for the film Apollo 13
.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kenneth S. Reightler, Jr..
  1. Houston, Texas: NASA. Archived
    (PDF) from the original on 7 May 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  2. ^ Ryba, Jeanne (2 April 2010). "STS-48". Mission Archives. NASA. Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  3. ^ Ryba, Jeanne (31 March 2010). "STS-60". Mission Archives. NASA. Archived from the original on 7 May 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2021.

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