The final mission of the American Space Shuttle Program in 2011 included Roberto Vittori as a mission specialist, marking the Italian officer as the last non-American astronaut to fly on the spacecraft. Beyond this historic designation, his professional trajectory spans extensive service within the Italian Air Force and multiple expeditionary flights to the International Space Station.
Military Training and Early Career
Roberto Vittori entered the Italian Accademia Aeronautica in 1989. Between 1991 and 1994, he flew Tornado GR1 aircraft with the 155º Gruppo based in Piacenza, attaining qualifications for formation leadership and night air-to-air refuelling. He later advanced his expertise in the United States, graduating first in his class from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School in 1995. Before joining the astronaut corps, he served as a project pilot at the Italian Test Center, contributing to the development of the EF2000 aircraft.
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Selected by the European Space Agency in 1998, Vittori moved to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, for technical assignments. In April 2002, he flew the Soyuz TM-34 taxi mission to the International Space Station to deliver a lifeboat craft and oversee four experiments, returning in Soyuz TM-33. His second flight occurred in April 2005 via Soyuz TMA-6, where he conducted studies on plant germination and muscle fatigue. He returned to Earth inside the Soyuz TMA-5 capsule, becoming the first European astronaut to visit the station twice.
Artistic Initiatives and Public Life
During his 2005 mission, Vittori carried a rolled painting by George Pusenkoff titled Single Mona Lisa (1:1) to the International Space Station. This project followed extensive coordination with the Italian ambassador to Russia, Gianfranco Facco Bonetti, intended to mirror the intersection of science and art found in the work of Leonardo da Vinci. In 2015, while living in Washington, DC, Vittori drew public attention for filing over 6,800 complaints regarding flight paths from Reagan National Airport over his residential neighborhood.
Fast facts
- Born: 15 October 1964, Viterbo
- Military Rank: Brigadier General
- Total flight hours: Over 1700
- Primary occupations: Astronaut, aircraft pilot, air force officer
- Spaceflights: Soyuz TM-34, Soyuz TMA-6, STS-134
- Awards: Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
- Children: 3 sons
Questions readers ask
What aircraft has Roberto Vittori flown?
He has logged over 1700 flight hours in more than 40 aircraft types, including the Tornado, F-104, F-18, AMX, M-2000, G-222, and P-180.
Why is his participation in STS-134 significant?
Vittori was a mission specialist on STS-134, which was the penultimate mission of the American Space Shuttle Program; he holds the distinction of being the final non-US astronaut to fly on the Shuttle.
Achievements
- Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
- Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
- Worked as astronaut, aircraft pilot and air force officer
