Luke Delaney (born 1979) is a retired

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

and

NASA astronaut The NASA Astronaut Corps is a unit of the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) that selects, trains, and provides astronauts as crew members for U.S. and international space missions. It is based at Johnson Space Ce ...

candidate. Delaney is from

DeBary, Florida DeBary is a city in Volusia County, Florida, United States, on the eastern shore of the St. Johns River near Lake Monroe. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 20,696. It is part of the Deltona–Daytona Beach–Orm ...

Early life and education

He graduated from

Deltona High School Deltona High School is a public high school located in Deltona, Florida, Deltona, Florida, United States. It is located on Wolf Pack Run, east of Interstate 4 in the city's northwestern corner. In the 2011–2012 academic school year, the school en ...

Deltona, Florida Deltona is a city in central Florida and the most populous city in Volusia County. It is located on the northern shore of Lake Monroe along the St. Johns River in central Florida. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 93,692. The city ...

. He holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the

University of North Florida The University of North Florida (UNF) is a public research university in Jacksonville, Florida. It is part of the State University System of Florida and is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Sch ...

and a master’s degree in aerospace engineering from the

Naval Postgraduate School The Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a public graduate school operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California. It offers master’s and doctoral degrees in more than 70 fields of study to the U.S. Armed Forces, DOD ci ...

Career

Began his military enlisting in the

in 1998. He is a distinguished naval aviator who participated in exercises throughout the Asia-Pacific region and conducted combat missions in support of

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used synonymously by the U.S. government for both the War in Afghanistan (2001–2014) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response to the September 11 at ...

. Completed the Naval Aircrew Candidate School at

Naval Air Station Pensacola Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola (formerly NAS/KNAS until changed circa 1970 to allow Nassau International Airport, now Lynden Pindling International Airport, to have IATA code NAS), "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United State ...

where he was selected to be a KC-130 Navigator. Graduated from the Marine Corps Expeditionary Warfare School in

Quantico, Virginia Quantico ( or ; formerly Potomac) is a town in Prince William County, Virginia, United States. The population was 480 at the 2010 census. Quantico is approximately 35 miles southwest of Washington, DC, bordered by the Potomac River to the east a ...

. He attended Marine Aerial Navigator School at

Randolph Air Force Base Randolph Air Force Base was an United States Air Force base located at Universal City, Texas ( east-northeast of Downtown San Antonio). Opened in 1931, Randolph has been a flying training facility for the United States Army Air Corps, the Uni ...

in Texas. As a test pilot, he executed numerous flights evaluating weapon systems integration, and he served as a test pilot instructor. Delaney retired from the Marine Corps in 2020 and transitioned as a research pilot at NASA’s

Langley Research Center The Langley Research Center (LaRC or NASA Langley), located in Hampton, Virginia, United States of America, is the oldest of NASA's field centers. It directly borders Langley Air Force Base and the Back River on the Chesapeake Bay. LaRC has fo ...

, in Hampton, Virginia, where he supported airborne science missions. Including his NASA career, Delaney logged more than 3,700 flight hours on 48 models of jet, propeller, and rotary wing aircraft.

Astronaut candidacy

On December 6, 2021, he was revealed to be one of the 10 candidates selected in the 2021

NASA Astronaut Group 23 NASA Astronaut Group 23 (nicknamed The Flies) was announced on December 6, 2021, with the class reporting for duty some time in 2022. Twelve astronaut candidates were selected, including seven men and five women. History NASA announced the cre ...

, to report for duty in January 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Delaney, Luke Astronaut candidates United States Marine Corps personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Naval Postgraduate School alumni Military personnel from Florida United States Marine Corps officers University of North Florida alumni Living people 1979 births