Douglas G. Hurley /

Douglas Gerald Hurley (born October 21, 1966) is a NASA astronaut. He piloted Space Shuttle mission STS-127, which launched July 15, 2009. He is assigned as pilot for STS-135, the final flight of the Space Shuttle program, in July 2011. He is also the first Marine to fly the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet. Hurley was born on October 21, 1966 in in Endicott, New York. He graduated from Owego Free Academy in Owego, New York in 1984. He graduated magna cum laude with honors from Tulane University, earning his B.S.E. in civil engineering in 1988. He was also a distinguished graduate from both Tulane's NROTC program and from USMC Officer Candidates School. Hurley received his commission as a second lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps from the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps at Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1988. After graduation, he attended The Basic School at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, and later the Infantry Officers Course. Following aviation indoctrination at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, he entered flight training in Texas in 1989; he was a distinguished graduate of the U.S. Navy Pilot Training program and was designated a naval aviator in