posted 06-01-2026 02:36 PM               

France Signs Historic Agreement with Vast to Haven-1

Today (June 1) at the Choose France Summit, created by the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, Vast announced its commitment to establish its European headquarters in Paris and an agreement with the Government of France, for a mission involving a French astronaut: the Haven-1 test flight, the first crewed mission to Vast's Haven-1 commercial space station scheduled to launch in 2027.

Above: ESA Reserve Astronaut Arnaud Prost. (ESA/A. Conigli)

For France, this agreement ensures the country can continue its low-Earth orbit missions, building upon its prior experience of training for and participating in operational manned space missions.

ESA Reserve Astronaut Arnaud Prost is intended to serve as a flight test engineer on the first crewed mission and flight acceptance test for Haven-1, scheduled to be the world's first commercial space station.

The mission is expected to last approximately two weeks and is planned for 2027, with transportation provided by SpaceX on a Dragon spacecraft launched aboard a Falcon 9 rocket.

Arnaud Prost is a French flight test engineer, military pilot, reserve astronaut and professional diver who graduated from École Polytechnique. After working as a test diver for COMEX on an underwater training spacesuit, he graduated as a fighter pilot in the French Air and Space Force. From 2020, he worked at the DGA Flight Test Centre in Istres on the RAFALE fighter jet, focusing on air-to-air combat, human–machine interfaces and Higher Airspace Operations. Since 2023, he has served as an operational pilot and aircraft commander of the E-3F AWACS for the 36th Airborne Command and Control Wing. In parallel, Prost was selected in November 2022 in the European Space Agency Astronaut Reserve. In 2024 and 2025, he completed ESA's PANGAEA geology training for Lunar and Martian exploration. In May 2026, he finished his basic astronaut reserve training.

The mission will focus on scientific research, technology demonstrations, and educational outreach activities, including experiments from French industry and academic institutions, all activities during which CNES, the French space agency, will put its expertise of more than 40 years of manned spaceflight to use.

In selecting Vast for this historic mission, France is paving the way for a sustained human presence in space while strengthening transatlantic partnerships and expanding opportunities for innovation, discovery, and exploration aboard Haven-1.

Above: Illustration of Haven-1 on orbit with Dragon docked. (Vast)

Additional crew members will be announced at a later date and are expected to include professional astronauts from sovereign countries with diplomatic ties to France.

"We thank France, but also CNES and ESA and NASA for their partnership and leadership in advancing human spaceflight," said Max Haot, Vast CEO. "This agreement reinforces Vast's commitment to launch and operate the world's first commercial space station."

Haven-1 is currently in integration at Vast's headquarters in Long Beach, California in preparation for scheduled launch in 2027. After launch, the first Haven-1 crew is expected to fly to the station within a few weeks.