Astronaut Mike Fincke Retires From NASA After 30 Years, 4 Spaceflights and 549 Days in Orbit

NASA astronaut Mike Fincke is departing the agency after exactly 30 years of service, NASA announced Wednesday. Across his career he flew four missions, spent 549 days in space — fourth among NASA astronauts all-time — and completed nine spacewalks totaling 48 hours and 37 minutes in support of the International Space Station, Spaceflight Now reported.

Four Missions, Four Eras

Fincke, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel, joined NASA's 16th astronaut class in 1996 and is one of only 13 people to launch to orbit on three different spacecraft. He first flew in 2004 aboard Soyuz TMA-4 for Expedition 9, serving as science officer and flight engineer with four spacewalks, then commanded Expedition 18 on Soyuz TMA-13 in 2008, preparing the station for its transition to six-person crews. In 2011 he flew the final flight of space shuttle Endeavour, STS-134, operating the robotic arm and helping install the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer.

The Final Mission

His most recent flight was as pilot of NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 mission, which launched August 1, 2025 and returned in January 2026. Aboard the station he served as flight engineer for Expedition 73 and commander of Expedition 74 — after a health scare aboard the outpost prompted the first-ever medical evacuation from the orbital laboratory, with Fincke later revealing he had temporarily lost the ability to speak for about 20 minutes, a condition researchers are still studying.

After exactly 30 years, I am departing NASA, but I remain deeply committed to the work of exploration, Fincke said in a statement. NASA gave me the extraordinary privilege of serving alongside remarkable people, flying and helping develop spacecraft, and contributing to the International Space Station from its earliest days through command in orbit.