Kwatsi Alibaruho

Who is Kwatsi Alibaruho?

Kwatsi Alibaruho is a Flight Director for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. He is the first African American NASA Flight Director.

As of November 2005, only 58 people had directed human spaceflight missions. The Flight Director class of 2005, of which Alibaruho is a member, is the second largest ever appointed and the most diverse. The nine-member group also included three women and two Hispanics. Leading a team of flight controllers, support personnel and engineering experts, a flight director has the overall responsibility to manage and carry out Space Shuttle flights and International Space Station expeditions. A flight director also leads and orchestrates planning and integration activities with flight controllers, payload customers, space station partners and others.