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Eytan Stibbe | |
|---|---|
| איתן סטיבה | |
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| Born | (1958-01-12)January 12, 1958 (age 67) Haifa, Israel |
| Space career | |
| Axiom Space | |
Time in space | 17 days, 1 hour and 48 minutes |
| Missions | Axiom Mission 1 |
Eytan Meir Stibbe (Hebrew:איתן סטיבה) is anIsraeli former fighter pilot, businessman andcommercial astronaut.[1]
In November 2020 he paidAxiom Space to become a private astronaut on a ten day mission to theInternational Space Station aboard aSpaceXCrew Dragon spacecraft onAxiom Mission 1, a private crewed orbital spaceflight. The stay was extended to 17 days.[2]
Stibbe was born inHaifa,Israel, in 1958, to parents who hadimmigrated fromthe Netherlands in 1953. He grew up in theUnited States until the age of 7, when the family moved back toRamat Gan, a suburb ofTel Aviv. His father was a soil and water researcher at theVolcani Institute inRehovot, and his mother was asocial worker at a mental health clinic in Ramat Gan. Stibbe studied at theBlich High School [he] in Ramat Gan and was active in theIsraeli Scouts (Tzofim) movement.[3]
In July 1976, Stibbe entered theIsraeli Air Force's fighter pilot training course. He first served as aSkyhawk pilot in Squadrons 102 and 140, then moved to Squadron 201 (Phantoms) and continued on to become anF-16 pilot in Squadron 117. During his time in the IAF he was assigned to117 Squadron flying F-16s under the command of ColonelIlan Ramon, who later became the first ever Israeli to fly in space aboardSTS-107.[2] He completed his military service in 1984 and continued to serve as a reservist in Squadron 117 until 2012. He attained the rank ofcolonel.
In 1984, after his military service, Stibbe joined a team of advisers at Israel Aircraft Industries that was working on the development of systems for theLavifighter jet.[citation needed] In 1985, he was among the founders of the LR Group, which implemented projects and established infrastructures indeveloping countries. In 2011, he left LR and sold his share of the company (33%).[citation needed] In 2012, he acquired 35% of Mitrelli, an engineering, procurement and construction company (ECP) whose fields of operation were similar to those of LR.[citation needed] In 2018, Stibbe left Mitrelli and sold all of his shares in the company.[citation needed]
Stibbe established Vital Capital Fund in 2010. The company invests in enterprises whose goal is to improve the economic, personal and social wellbeing of low- and middle-income communities. The fund's investment strategy is to invest in companies whose intention is to generate positive, measurable social and environmental impact alongside a competitive financial return.[4]
He is a member of the advisory committee of Bridges Israel, animpact investment fund that invests in Israeli businesses.[citation needed] Stibbe is a partner in HarTech, which develops simulation systems; LISOD, Hospital of Israeli Oncology in Ukraine; Pangea Therapeutics, a digital healthcare company that develops highly personalized cancer medications and treatments based on computational genomics; andProprep, an onlineSTEM tutorial company.[citation needed]
On 8 April 2022, Stibbe took off for theInternational Space Station (ISS) fromCape Canaveral as aspace tourist. Stibbe is the 583rd space traveler in the world.[5] He became the second Israeli in space, afterIlan Ramon, whodied onboard Columbia while returning from space.[6] Stibbe described his space tourism as the "Rakia [he]" mission, which was the title of the book published with the fragments of the diary of his late commander, which survived reentry.[7] He flew to theISS aboardSpaceX Axiom Space-1, paying for his own ticket to ride.[8] Stibbe was accompanying and demonstrating many Israeli technologies during this mission along withAstroRad a radiation protective vest fromStemRad.[9]
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