Keynote Speeches

with Pam

Col. Pamela Ann Melroy

NASA Deputy Director, Space Shuttle Flight Commander, Test Pilot, Board Member and International Speaker.

Col. Pamela Ann Melroy acted as Deputy Director of NASA from 2021-2025, managing a 25bn annual budget and more than 17’000 employees. She started her career as a jet pilot in the US Air Force, later became test pilot, and then astronaut. As one of two women in history, she piloted the Space Shuttle in the role of Flight Commander. These successes led to senior management positions in Lockheed Martin, the FAA, at DARPA as Deputy Director at the Tactical Technology Office and later her role at NASA. She has been inducted in the Astronaut Hall of Fame in 2021.

Keynotes and interviews

Keynote: NASA Space Symposium
NASA

Keynote: Why space exploration should be like Star Trek
TEDxMidAtlantic

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Podcast: Pamela Melroy - Soldier, Test Pilot, Astronaut
This Week in Space

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When you have picked a dream that is bigger than you, that truly reflects the ideals that you cherish,

and that can positively affect others, then you will always have another reason for carrying on.

Biography

Col. Pam Melroy is a senior aerospace executive with government and industry experience across civil, commercial, and national security space. She is the former Deputy Administrator of NASA, a former NASA astronaut and Space Shuttle commander, and a retired US Air Force test pilot.

Melroy was commissioned in the United States Air Force and served as a KC-10 copilot, aircraft commander, and instructor pilot. Melroy is a veteran of Operation Just Cause and Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, with over 200 combat and combat support hours. She attended the Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, California. She was assigned to the C-17 initial test team as a test pilot until her selection for the Astronaut Program. She has logged more than 6,000 hours flight time in more than 50 different aircraft.

Melroy was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in March 1995. She flew three missions in space: as Space Shuttle pilot during STS-92 in 2000 and STS-112 in 2002, and as Space Shuttle Commander during STS-120 in 2007. All three missions were assembly missions to build the International Space Station. She has logged more than 38 days in space and was one of only two women to command the Space Shuttle. She was inducted into the Astronaut Hall of Fame in 2021.

Colonel Melroy retired from the Air Force in 2007, and left NASA in August 2009. After NASA, she served in executive roles at Lockheed Martin, the Federal Aviation Administration, DARPA, Nova Systems Pty, and on multiple boards. In 2021 she was appointed by President Biden as the Deputy Administrator of NASA, serving until January 2025, where she was leading the formation of the Moon to Mars Strategy, the Commercial LEO Microgravity Strategy, the NASA Space Sustainability Strategy, the NASA Climate Strategy, and the NASA AI Strategy. She now serves as President and Managing Partner for MH Technology Partners, a consulting firm.

Melroy supported the initiation and development of the Australian Space Agency.

Melroy is a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the Society of Experimental Test Pilots, and the Royal Aeronautical Society. She is a Member of the US National Academy of Engineering.

Melroy is a popular speaker on topics such as the future of space, leadership, strategy and change management, and the state of the space industry.