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Luca Salvo PARMITANO

AF Captain,
ESA Astronaut, Italy

DATA AND PLACE OF BIRTH:
Born in Paterno on September 27, 1976 in Catania province, Sicilia.

EDUCATION:
Parmitano graduated from the Liceo Scientifico Statale Galileo Galilei in Catania in 1995.
In 1999 he received a bachelor's degree in political sciences at the University of Naples Federico II.
In 2000 he graduated from the Italian Air Force Academy in Pozzuoli.
In 2001 Parmitano passed training under the Euro-Nato Joint Jet Pilot Training Program in Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas.
In July 2009 he completed training as a test pilot at the French Test Pilot School (EPNEP-Ecole du Personnel Navigant d'Essais et de Reception) in Istres.

FAMILY STATUS: married.

AWARDS:
Awarded a Silver Medal For Aeronautical Valour (2007).

HOBBY:
Enjoys scuba diving, snowboarding, skydiving.

WORK EXPERIENCE:
He served as a pilot of the Italian Air Force. From 2001 to 2007 Parmitano flew the AM-X aircraft in the 13-th Squadron, 32nd Wing in Amendola He received qualification as Combat Ready, Four Ship Leader and Mission Commander/Package Leader. In 2003 in Pratica di Mare Air Force Base near Rome he was qualified as an Electronic Warfare Officer.

On May 20, 2009 he was selected for the ESA Astronaut Team (the 4-th selection). Upon completion of the general space training course at the official ceremony held on November 22, 2010 at the European Astronaut Center in German Cologne Parmitano received the ESA astronaut certificate.

In Autumn 2010 he passed a special course at Johnson Space Center, USA.

On December 5, 2010 it was reported that Parmitano was assigned to the prime crew of the ISS-36/37 Expedition as a flight enginner. At the same time these crewmembers (besides Parmitano there were Maksim Suraev and Karen Nyberg in the crew) will be backups of the Soyuz TMA-07M vehicle crew.
On February 18, 2011 his assignment tot the Soyuz TMA-09M vehicle crew was confirmed in ESA press release No. 08-2011 and NASA press release 11-044.

On August 18, 2011 Parmitano together with Maksim Suraev and Karen Nyberg within the fifth preliminary crew took part in the "sea" training at the Training Center of the Ministry of Emergencies in the vicinity of Noginsk. The crewmembers tested operations for redonning in the descent capsule and its escape, water landing, team building afloat, as well as the operating procedure related to the personal survival kit and interaction with the search-rescue services.

December 2012
By the data of the site www.astronaut.ru.