NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore retires after 25 years and 464 days in space

NASA has announced the retirement of astronaut and test pilot Barry “Butch” Wilmore after 25 years of service. 

The space agency confirmed his retirement in a statement on August 6, 2025. Throughout his career at NASA, Wilmore completed five spacewalks, spending a total of 32 hours outside the orbital laboratory. 

He also participated in three space missions, launching on the space shuttle Atlantis and Roscosmos Soyuz.  

On June 5, 2024, Wilmore took off on Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft for its inaugural crewed flight test mission. However, what was intended to be a week-long mission unexpectedly turned into a much longer stay.  

Wilmore and his colleague Suni Williams found themselves stranded in space for nine months due to issues with their Boeing’s Starliner return capsule, which had multiple helium leaks in its propulsion system. 

The stranded astronauts returned to Earth with other astronauts as part of the SpaceX Crew-9 mission aboard the SpaceX Dragon capsule on March 18, 2025. Both maintained that they were fully ready for their extended time in space and denied claims that they were “abandoned” or “stranded” in space. 

“Butch’s commitment to NASA’s mission and dedication to human space exploration is truly exemplary,” said Steve Koerner, Acting Director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. “His lasting legacy of fortitude will continue to impact and inspire the Johnson workforce, future explorers, and the nation for generations.” 

Wilmore is a decorated US Navy captain who has flown numerous tactical aircraft while deploying aboard four aircraft carriers during peacetime and combat operations.  

After graduating from the US Naval Test Pilot School, he became a test pilot and was chosen by NASA to be an astronaut in 2000. 

Wilmore said that even as he “ventured beyond Earth’s limits”, he remained “attuned to the beauty and significance of the world below”.  

“From my earliest days, I have been captivated by the marvels of creation, looking upward with an insatiable curiosity. This curiosity propelled me into the skies, and eventually to space,” Wilmore stated. The post NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore retires after 25 years and 464 days in space appeared first on AeroTime.

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