Inside the French Assembly's Hearing on European Human Spaceflight

Credit: CNES

On 13 March, the French National Assembly convened a hearing on human spaceflight to examine whether Europe should pursue the development of sovereign crewed launch capabilities. While the session included the predictable rubber-stamping of the proposal, there were also speakers who offered a surprisingly cogent argument against it.

Although the hearing was broad in scope, the discussion ultimately revolved around three central questions: what kind of crewed capability Europe should develop, where those missions should go, and why Europe should pursue human spaceflight.

On the question of why human spaceflight

The new interim president of CNES, Lionel Suchet, began the discussion with a significant admission, stating that the scientific and technological returns alone are not enough to justify human spaceflight. The real driver, he added, “has always been political.” This was a position supported by the proposition's most ardent detractor, Philippe Lugherini, who had served a…