Raja Chari - Age, Wiki and Bio | Test Pilot and Astronaut

Bio/Wiki

Full Name	Raja Jon Vurputoor Chari
Nickname	Grinder

Bachelor's Degree	Bachelor of Science in Astronautical Engineering and Engineering Science from United States Air Force Academy
Master's Degree	Master of Science in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Zodiac Sign	Cancer
Hometown	Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.
School	Columbus High School, Waterloo, Iowa, U.S. (1995)
College/University	United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado (1999) Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts (2001)

Marital Status

Family

Wife

Holly Schaffter Chari

Children

He has three children.

Parents

Father	Sreenivas V Chari (Engineer)
Mother	Peggy (American nurse and teacher)

Siblings

Brother - Krishna Chari (Younger)

Medals	Defense Meritorious Service Medal Meritorious Service Medal Aerial Achievement Medal Air Force Commendation Medal Air Force Achievement Medal Iraq Campaign Medal Korean Defense Service Medal Nuclear Deterrence Operations Service Medal
Timeline	Joined Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, Pacific Air Forces in November 2003 Attended F-15E Strike Eagle training at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina Joined 494FS, RAF Lakenheath, England, UK as F-15E IP in 2006 Completed training at the US Naval Test Pilot School in 2007 Worked as F-15 Experimental Test Pilot at Eglin AFB in December 2008 Became USAF SAF/RCO Program Manager in 2012 Appointed as 461st Flight Test Squadron Commander/F-35 Integrated Test Force Director in June 2015 Joined NASA as an astronaut in June 2017 Worked as Joint Test Team Director at Commercial Crew Program in 2019 Designated as SpaceX Crew3 Mission Commander in 2020 and became part of Artemis Team for the lunar mission in 2024

Medals

Timeline

Joined Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, Pacific Air Forces in November 2003
Attended F-15E Strike Eagle training at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina
Joined 494FS, RAF Lakenheath, England, UK as F-15E IP in 2006
Completed training at the US Naval Test Pilot School in 2007
Worked as F-15 Experimental Test Pilot at Eglin AFB in December 2008
Became USAF SAF/RCO Program Manager in 2012
Appointed as 461st Flight Test Squadron Commander/F-35 Integrated Test Force Director in June 2015
Joined NASA as an astronaut in June 2017
Worked as Joint Test Team Director at Commercial Crew Program in 2019
Designated as SpaceX Crew3 Mission Commander in 2020 and became part of Artemis Team for the lunar mission in 2024

Ancestors trace origins to Telangana, India.
Raised in Cedar Falls, Black Hawk County, Iowa, U.S.
Long-standing interest in aircraft since youth.
Enrolled in the Air Force Academy with aspirations to be a test pilot and then an astronaut.
Father practices Hinduism while mother is Catholic.
Supportive wife named Holly contributed to his successful career.
Extensive background in both the Air Force and NASA.