James Douglas Adrianus van Hoften 1944

James Van Hoften is a former astronaut who has participated in two NASA missions consisting of the 7 day STS-41-C Challenger flight which took off on April 6, 1984, and the 7 day STS-51-I Discovery flight which took off on August 27, 1985. He served on board both flights as a mission specialist.

James Van Hoften, nicknamed “Ox”, was born on June 11, 1944 in Fresno, California, but he considers Burlingame, California to be his home town. He graduated from Mills High School in Millbrae, California, and then entered the University of California, Berkeley, and earned his B. S. degree in Civil Engineering in 1966. He then did his graduate work at Colorado State University, and earned his M. S. degree in Hydraulic Engineering in1968. Several years later he resumed his graduate studies and completed his Ph. D. degree in Hydraulic Engineering in 1976. The eight year gap between his M.S. degree and his Ph. D. degree was caused by his participation in the Viet Nam War as a United States Navy pilot, as described below.

Van Hoften enlisted in the United States Air Force in 1969, and received his initial pilot training in Pensacola, Florida, and then completed his jet pilot training in Beeville, Texas in November, 1970. He was then assigned to the Naval Air Station in Miramar, California, and piloted the F-4 Phantom. In 1972 he was assigned to the VF-154 Air Group on the aircraft carrier, the USS Ranger, and participated in two cruises to Southeast Asia where he flew approximately 60 combat missions as part of the Viet Nam War. He remained on active duty status with the United States Navy until 1974, when he was able to resume his studies for his Ph. D. degree.

Following the completion of his Ph. D. degree in 1976, Van Hoften accepted a position as Assistant Professor in Civil Engineering at the University of Houston. While he was a graduate student during his doctoral studies, he was able to remain in the United States Air Force/Navy Reserve, and so was able to maintain his flight status. Initially he flew F4N’s with the Navy’s Reserve Fighter Squadron 201, at NAS, Dallas for three years from 1974 to 1977, and then he became a member of the Texas Air National Guard with the 147th Fighter Interceptor Group, and served as a pilot in the F4C from 1977 until 1980.

In January 1978, Dr.Van Hoften was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA, and began his astronaut training, which he completed by August, 1979. During the initial period between August 1979 and April 1984, Van Hoften supported the Shuttle entry and on-orbit guidance navigation and flight control testing at the Flight Systems Laboratory at Downey, California. Later he was lead of the Astronaut Support Team at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Van Hoften’s first space flight was on STS-41-C Challenger which lasted from April 6 to April 13, 1984. Probably the most important task of that mission was the repair of the Solar Maximum Satellite. It was retrieved from space with the robot arm, repaired on board, and then re-launched by the robot arm. Several other experiments were also conducted. Challenger landed safely at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

Van Hoften’s second mission was on STS-51-I Discovery flight which lasted from August 27 to September 3, 1985. This flight had a very extensive schedule. Three communication satellites were successfully launched, and one ailing satellite was successfully recovered. Also Van Hoften participated in two Extravehicular Activities [EVA’s] which were both successful. Several other experiments were also executed. Discovery landed safely at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

Van Hoften, during his extensive Air Force and NASA career, received a number of honors. He was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal, two Navy Air Medals, the National Defense Service Medal, and two NASA Space Flight Medals.

Following his military and space career, in 1986, Van Hoften joined the Bechtel Corporation, where he rose to the position of Senior Vice President. He was stationed for some time in Hong Kong during the construction of Hong Kong’s new airport.