WASHINGTON - Commercial space station developer Vast has secured a deal with the French government to fly two French astronauts on its missions, including the inaugural voyage to its Haven-1 space station. Because nothing says 'liberté, égalité, fraternité' like hitching a ride on a SpaceX Crew Dragon.
Vast announced June 1 an agreement to fly a French astronaut on the company's first private astronaut mission to the International Space Station, and another on the first flight to Haven-1. Both missions, scheduled for 2027, will last about two weeks each. That's two weeks of microgravity, baguettes, and, presumably, impeccable style.
“This agreement reinforces Vast’s commitment to launch and operate the world’s first commercial space station,” said Max Haot, Vast's chief executive, in a statement. “We are honored that France selected Vast for these historic missions.” Yes, because when you think of historic space missions, you think of France, right? Well, they did get first dibs on the Eiffel Tower, so there's that.
Vast said that veteran European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Pesquet will fly on, and command, the company's ISS mission. Pesquet, who previously flew two long-duration missions to the station in 2016 and 2021, will now have the privilege of commanding a private mission. This is possible thanks to changes in NASA rules. The agency had required such missions be commanded by a former NASA astronaut with flight experience, but in the most recent solicitation in 2025, NASA allowed companies to propose alternative commanders from Canada, Europe, or Japan with similar spaceflight experience. Because apparently, NASA finally realized that not all heroes wear stars and stripes.
Flying on Haven-1 will be Arnaud Prost, an ESA reserve astronaut selected in the agency's 2022 class. Reserve astronauts are trained for short-term missions without becoming full-time members of ESA's astronaut corps. It's like being a substitute teacher, but in space. Two reserve astronauts, Sweden's Marcus Wandt and Poland's Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski, have already flown on Axiom Space's Ax-3 and Ax-4 missions, respectively. They've set the bar for part-time space explorers, and now Prost gets to follow suit.
Vast has not announced any other crew members for either mission, but said they will include “professional astronauts from sovereign countries with diplomatic ties to France.” That's a diplomatic way of saying 'friends of France only, please.' The crew selected for the ISS mission will have to be approved by a multilateral board composed of representatives of the ISS partners. So, no pressure, but the entire international space community gets a say.
The missions will also conduct science experiments, technology demonstrations, and outreach activities in cooperation with French companies and academic institutions. Because what better way to promote French culture than by conducting science experiments in orbit? Vast also said the French government will provide more details at an event called the International Space Summit, to be held in Paris in September. Because if you're going to talk space, you might as well do it in the City of Light.
The deal was announced at the Choose France Summit, an event organized by French President Emmanuel Macron to highlight foreign investment in the country. Vast also announced it would establish its European headquarters in Paris. Because if you're going to build commercial space stations, you might as well have a chic address.
This announcement underscores the importance of what are known in the industry as 'sovereign astronauts' - those representing national governments - to the business cases of commercial space stations. At the Space Symposium in April, executives said they saw strong interest from countries wanting to fly their astronauts on private missions or commercial stations. So, while space may be the final frontier, it's also becoming a diplomatic playground.