John Herrington John Bennett Herrington ( born September 14 , 1958 ) is a retired United States naval aviator and former NASA astronaut . With his single Space Shuttle mission in late 2002 , Herrington became the first enrolled member of a Native American tribe to fly in space . ( William R . Pogue is of Choctaw ancestry and was a crewman aboard Skylab 4 in 1973 - 74 , but he is not an enrolled member of the Choctaw . ) Early life . Herrington was born in Wetumka , Oklahoma . He grew up in Colorado Springs , Colorado , Riverton , Wyoming , and Plano , Texas , where he graduated from Plano Senior High School . He earned a bachelor ' s degree in applied mathematics from the University of Colorado Colorado Springs before receiving his commission in the United States Navy in 1984 . To honor his Native American heritage , Herrington , an enrolled member of the Chickasaw Nation , carried a Chickasaw Nation flag on his eleven - day trip to space . The flag had been presented to him by Chickasaw Nation Governor Bill Anoatubby . United States Navy career . Herrington received his commission in the U . S . Navy from the Aviation Officer Candidate School at Naval Air Station Pensacola , Florida in March 1984 . In March 1985 he was designated a Naval Aviator and proceeded to Patrol Squadron Thirty - One ( VP - 31 ) at Moffett Field , California for training in the P - 3C Orion . His first operational assignment was with Patrol Squadron Forty - Eight ( VP - 48 ) where he made three operational deployments , two to the Northern Pacific based from Naval Air Station Adak , Alaska and one to the Western Pacific based from the Naval Air Station Cubi Point , Philippines . While assigned to VP - 48 , Herrington was designated a Patrol Plane Commander , Mission Commander , and Patrol Plane Instructor Pilot . Following completion of his first operational tour , Herrington then returned to VP - 31 as a Fleet Replacement Squadron Instructor Pilot . While assigned to VP - 31 he was selected to attend the United States Naval Test Pilot School at Naval Air Station Patuxent River , Maryland in January 1990 . After graduation in December , 1990 , he reported to the Force Warfare Aircraft Test Directorate as a project test pilot for the Joint Primary Aircraft Training System . Herrington conducted additional flight test assignments flying numerous variants of the P - 3 Orion as well as the T - 34C and the de Havilland Dash 7 . Following his selection as an Aeronautical Engineering Duty Officer ( AEDO ) , Herrington reported to the U . S . Naval Postgraduate School where he completed a master of science degree in aeronautical engineering in June 1995 . Herrington was assigned as a special projects officer to the Bureau of Naval Personnel Sea Duty Component when selected for the astronaut program . During his military service he was awarded : the Navy Commendation Medal , Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation , Coast Guard Meritorious Unit Commendation , Coast Guard Special Operations Service Ribbon , National Defense Service Medal , Sea Service Deployment Ribbon s ( 3 ) , and various other service awards . NASA career . Selected by NASA in April 1996 , Herrington reported to the 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 . Underwater laboratory . In July 2004 , Herrington served as the commander of the mission aboard the Aquarius underwater 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 . Honors . Herrington was inducted into the Chickasaw Hall of Fame in 2002 . External links .