ASTRONAUT
Willy McCool’s father was a Navy and Marine aviator. He followed his father’s path after graduating 2nd in his class from the Naval Academy in 1983 and became not only an aviator but an Astronaut.
McCool was a member of the Columbia crew when it broke up on re-entry in 2003. He joined NASA in 1993 after a distinguished career aboard the USS Coral Sea and as a Navy test pilot. Commander McCool’s official NASA Bio can be found at: http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/mccool.html.