| Alan Goodwin Poindexter | |
|---|---|
| NASA Astronaut | |
| Nationality | American |
| Status | Active |
| Born | November 5, 1961 Pasadena, California |
| Other occupation | Test pilot |
| Rank | Captain, USN |
| Time in space | 27d 21h 09m |
| Selection | 1998 NASA Group |
| Missions | STS-122, STS-131 |
| Mission insignia | |
Alan Goodwin "Dex" Poindexter (born November 5, 1961) is an American naval officer and a former NASA astronaut.
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Poindexter was born to John Poindexter in Pasadena, California, and grew up in Rockville, Maryland, which he considers to be his hometown. He is married to the former Lisa A. Pfeiffer of Gulf Breeze, Florida. They have two children. His recreational interests include motorcycling, running, weight lifting, water skiing, boating, hunting, and fishing.
Poindexter attended high school at Coronado High School in Coronado, California, graduating in 1979. He received an associate's degree in engineering from Pensacola Junior College in Pensacola, Florida in 1983,[1] and then attended Georgia Tech, graduating with highest honors with a bachelor's degree of aerospace engineering in 1986. In 1995 he received a master of science degree in aeronautical engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School.
Poindexter was commissioned following graduation from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1986. After a short tour of duty at the Hypervelocity Wind Tunnel Facility, Naval Surface Weapons Center, White Oak, Maryland, Poindexter reported for flight training in Pensacola, Florida. He was designated a Naval Aviator in 1988 and reported to Fighter Squadron 124, Naval Air Station Miramar, California, for transition to the F-14 Tomcat. Following his initial training, Poindexter was assigned to Fighter Squadron 211, also at Miramar, and made two deployments to the Persian Gulf during Operations Desert Storm and Southern Watch. During his second deployment in 1993, he was selected to attend the Naval Postgraduate School/U.S. Naval Test Pilot School Cooperative Program. Following graduation in December 1995, Poindexter was assigned as a Test Pilot and Project Officer at the Naval Strike Aircraft Test Squadron (NSATS), Naval Air Station (NAS) Patuxent River, Maryland. While at NSATS, Poindexter was assigned as the lead test pilot for the F-14 Digital Flight Control System where he logged the first carrier landing and catapult launch of an F-14 with the upgraded flight controls. He also flew numerous high angle of attack/departure tests, weapons separation tests and carrier suitability trials. Following his tour at Patuxent River, Poindexter reported to Fighter Squadron 32, NAS Oceana, Virginia, where he was serving as a department head when he was selected for Astronaut training.
Poindexter has more than 4,000 hours in over 30 aircraft types and has logged over 450 carrier landings.
Selected by NASA in June 1998, he reported for training in August 1998. Initially Poindexter served in the Astronaut Office Shuttle Operations Branch performing duties as the lead support astronaut at Kennedy Space Center. In December 2002, he was named as Pilot on STS-120 mission to deliver the Harmony connecting node to the International Space Station; an assignment which abruptly ended with the Columbia disaster just two months later. In July 2006, Poindexter was assigned as Pilot on the STS-122 mission that delivered the European Space Agency’s Columbus Laboratory to the International Space Station in February 2008.
Poindexter served as a lead CAPCOM for the STS-125 mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope in May 2009, as well as the launch CAPCOM for the STS-127 mission in July, 2009. He was the Commander of STS-131, which launched in April 2010. The mission's primary payload was the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module.
On his retirement from NASA service, Peggy Whitson, chief of the Astronaut Office at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston said that "Dex was a well-respected leader within our office, We will miss him being part of our team and wish him the best in his new role as he continues his service to the Navy and the country."
Poindexter is now dean of students and executive director of programs at the Naval Postgraduate School.[2]
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