New NASA Astronaut: Cameron Jones

Bio
Cameron Jones, born in Iowa, considers Savanna, Illinois, his hometown. He is married to Cristi Jones, originally of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, and they have one daughter. Jones enjoys spending time with family and his dog, hiking, camping, rafting, traveling, strength training, and sports. His parents, Michael and Janis Jones, reside in Dixon, Illinois.

He graduated from West Carroll High School in Savanna and earned a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering in 2012 and a master’s degree in 2018 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He commissioned as a U.S. Air Force officer through the University’s ROTC program.

Background
A major in the United States Air Force, Jones earned a master’s degree in flight test engineering in 2022 from the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, California. He is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Weapons School at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.

He served in operational assignments at Langley and Elmendorf Air Force Bases, attended Weapons School, served as weapons officer for the 525th Fighter Squadron in Alaska, conducted F-22 developmental flight tests, and was director of Operations with the 411th Flight Test Squadron at Edwards. He has more than 1,600 flight hours in over 30 aircraft, including 300 flight test hours and 150 combat hours. At selection, he was an Air Force Academic Fellow at DARPA.