John Bennett Herrington is a retired United States Naval Aviator and former NASAastronaut. In 2002, Herrington became the first enrolled member of a Native American tribe to fly in space. He is married to Debra Ann Farmer.
Selected by NASA in April 1996, Herrington reported to the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in August 1996. He completed two years of training and evaluation, and qualified for flight assignment as a mission specialist. Herrington was assigned to the Flight Support Branch of the Astronaut Office where he served as a member of the Astronaut Support Personnel team responsible for Shuttle launch preparations and post-landing operations.
Spaceflight
Herrington was selected as a Mission Specialist for STS-113, the sixteenth Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station. Endeavour was launched from Kennedy Space Center on November 23, 2002 to deliver the P1 Truss segment, which provides structural support for the Space Station radiators. Endeavour also delivered a new Expedition 6 crew to the Station, returning to Earth on December 7, 2002 with the Expedition 5 crew ending their 6-month stay in space. The total mission duration was 13 days, 18 hours and 47 minutes. During the mission Herrington performed three spacewalks, totaling 19 hours and 55 minutes. These spacewalks are commemorated on the reverse of the 2019 Sacagawea dollar coin.
Underwater laboratory
In July 2004, Herrington served as the commander of the mission aboard the Aquariusunderwater laboratory, living and working underwater for ten days. Herrington retired from the Navy and NASA in July 2005.
Rocketplane
In September 2005, Herrington resigned from NASA to become Vice President/Director of flight Operations for Rocketplane Limited, Inc., where he replaced Mitchell Burnside Clapp. He was also to serve as the pilot of the XP Spaceplane. Herrington also provides part-time support for the Center for Space Studies at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. In December 2007, Herrington resigned from Rocketplane, and stated that he plans to continue doing public speaking engagements as well as work with the Chickasaw Nation.
Cross-country bike ride
In 2008 Herrington embarked on a cross-country bicycle ride through the United States from Cape Flattery, Washington to Cape Canaveral, Florida. The ride took three months, from August 13 to November 15, 2008.
In 2016 Herrington authored a children's book called Mission to Space published by White Dog Press, a secondary imprint of Chickasaw Press. In the book, Herrington shares his passion for space travel and provides a glimpse into his astronaut training and mission to the International Space Station. The book includes an English to Chickasaw vocabulary list with space-related terms.
Speaking
Herrington currently travels the nation speaking to students, educators, nonprofits and corporations on an array of topics originating from his unique background in STEM and aviation. He is managed by Key Speakers Bureau.