Joshua Kutryk

Joshua Kutryk (born March 21, 1982) is a Canadian astronaut, test pilot, fighter pilot and engineer. He was selected by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) as one of the two members of the 2017 CSA Group alongside Jenni Gibbons.

Early life and education Joshua Kutryk was born on March 21, 1982, in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta. His family moved frequently, living in Fort Saskatchewan, Elk Point and Whitehorse before his father retired from a career in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, at which time the family moved to a cattle farm near Beauvallon, Alberta. He attended St. John XXIII Catholic School. His family emigrated to Canada from Ukraine in 1910.

He graduated from the Royal Military College of Canada in 2004 with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering.

He subsequently completed a master's degree in space studies at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 2009, a master's degree in flight test engineering at the Air University in 2012, and a master's degree in defence studies at the Royal Military College of Canada in 2014. Joshua Kutryk is a distinguished graduate of the United States Air Force Test Pilot School in Edwards, California. He is also a graduate of the Canadian Forces College Joint Command and Staff Program.

Career Prior to joining the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), Kutryk was an experimental test pilot and a fighter pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) in Cold Lake, Alberta, where he led the unit responsible for flight-testing of fighter aircraft in Canada. He earned the rank of lieutenant-colonel. Kutryk was most notably responsible for the testing of new aircraft technologies on the CF-18 fighter jet. Kutryk served in combat deployments to both Libya and Afghanistan during his time in the RCAF. He has accumulated over 4200 hours of flying experience across more than 40 types of aircraft.

In 2012, he received the Liethen-Title Award for the top test pilot graduate from the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School. This award was also conferred to his fellow astronaut Chris Hadfield in 1988. in the training ESA CAVES organized by the European Space Agency between Italy and Slovenia.

Kutryk trained for Boeing Starliner-1. However, in November 2025, the mission was converted to cargo only.

On April 23, 2026, it was announced that Kutryk will fly to the ISS aboard the SpaceX Crew-13 mission, launching no earlier than September 2026.