Matthew Dominick

Matthew Dominick
NASA portrait, 2017
Born	Matthew Stuart Dominick (1981-12-07) December 7, 1981 (age 42) Wheat Ridge, Colorado, U.S.
Education	University of San Diego (BS) Naval Postgraduate School (MS)
Space career
NASA astronaut and spacecraft commander
Rank	Commander, USN
Time in space	Currently in space
Selection	NASA Group 22 (2017)
Missions	SpaceX Crew-8 (Expedition 70/71)
Mission insignia

Matthew Stuart Dominick (born December 7, 1981; CDR, USN) is a US Navy test pilot and NASA astronaut. He has more than 1,600 hours of flight time in 28 aircraft, 400 carrier-arrested landings, 61 combat missions, and almost 200 flight test carrier landings. He is currently on the ISS aboard the SpaceX Crew-8 mission.^[1]

Early life and education

Matthew Stuart Dominick was born on December 7, 1981, in Wheat Ridge, Colorado to Donald and Rhonda Dominick. He graduated from D'Evelyn Junior/Senior High School in Littleton, Colorado. In 2005, he received a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering at the University of San Diego with minors in physics and mathematics, and was a member of the Navy ROTC and Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity.^[2][3]

Military career

Following his graduation from the University of San Diego, Dominick was commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Navy. He attended Primary Flight Training at NAS Pensacola and was designated a Naval Aviator in 2007. He completed F/A-18 Super Hornet training with VFA-106 at NAS Oceana, before being assigned to VFA-143. With VFA-143, Dominick completed two deployments in support of Operation Enduring Freedom before being selected to attend the United States Naval Test Pilot School (USNTPS) / Naval Postgraduate School co-operative program, allowing him to earn a Master of Science in Systems Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School and attend the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School.^[2]

Following graduation from USNTPS, Dominick was designated a test pilot and was assigned to VX-23, based out of NAS Patuxent River, Maryland. There, he served as a developmental flight test project officer on numerous programs, including MAGIC CARPET, Joint Precision Approach & Landing Systems and Infrared Search and Track Pod. Dominick also contributed to the development of the X-47B, V-22 Osprey, E-2C Hawkeye, and F-35C Lightning II. At the time of his selection as an Astronaut, Dominick was serving as Department Head with VFA-115, based out of Atsugi, Japan.^[2]

His promotion to Navy commander was approved on June 27, 2019, and made effective on September 1, 2020.^[4]

NASA career

In June 2017, Dominick was selected as a member of NASA Astronaut Group 22, and began his two-year training. At the time of his selection, Dominick was at sea on the USS Ronald Reagan.^[2][5][6] He is the commander of the SpaceX Crew-8 mission to the ISS.^[7]

Personal life

Dominick and his wife, Faith, have two daughters.^[2]

Awards and honors

Dominick was the 2015 Naval Test Wing Atlantic Test Pilot of the Year and a Member of the 2015 Department of the Navy Test Team of the Year. He has received three Strike/Flight Air Medals, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and three Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals. He is a member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots, Society of Flight Test Engineers, and the Tailhook Association.^[2]

References