Born February 21, 1964 in Orange, New Jersey. He has two children. Graduated from Mountain High School, West Orange, New Jersey, in 1982; received a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from the State University of New York Maritime College in 1987, and a Master of Science degree in aviation systems from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in 1996. Kelly received his commission from the State University of New York Maritime College in May 1987, and was designated a naval aviator in July 1989 at Naval Air Station (NAS) Beeville, Texas. He then reported to Fighter Squadron 101 at NAS Oceana, Virginia Beach, Virginia, for initial F-14 Tomcat training. Upon completion of this training, he was assigned to Fighter Squadron 143 and made overseas deployments to the North Atlantic, Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea and Persian Gulf aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69). Kelly was selected to attend the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School in January 1993 and completed training in June 1994. After graduation, he worked as a test pilot at the Strike Aircraft Test Squadron, Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, flying the F-14 Tomcat and F/A-18 Hornet. Kelly was the first pilot to fly an F-14 with an experimental digital flight control system installed and performed subsequent high angle of attack and departure testing. He has logged over 4,000 flight hours in more than 30 different aircraft and has over 250 carrier landings. Kelly holds a United States Coast Guard Third Mate’s license. On October 7, 2010, Kelly launched aboard the Soyuz TMA-M spacecraft to serve a 6-month tour of duty on the International Space Station. He assumed command of Expedition 26 once the Soyuz TMA-19 undocked on November 24, 2010.
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