N° 72–2001: L'astronaute de l'ESA Frank De Winne partira à bord d'une capsule Soyouz pour la Station spatiale internationale (ISS)

Cette mission permettra également d'exécuter un solide programme d'expérimentations scientifiques, notamment pour le compte de chercheurs belges.

Frank De Winne a été désigné pour cette mission dans le cadre de l'accord conclu début 2001 entre Antonio Rodotà, Directeur général de l'ESA, et Iouri Koptiev, Directeur général de l'Agence russe de l'aéronautique et de l'espace (Rosaviakosmos), en vue de permettre à des astronautes européens de participer à des vols Soyouz vers l'ISS pendant la période 2001-2006. Cette mission bénéficie du soutien résolu du gouvernement belge et en particulier du Commissaire chargé de la politique scientifique, Yvan Ilieff.

Cet accord, qui prévoit également des possibilités de participer à des vols de rotation de l'équipage pouvant conduire les astronautes à séjourner 3 à 4 mois à bord de la Station, représente un pas important dans l'accumulation d'un savoir-faire opérationnel par le Corps des astronautes européens avant le démarrage de l'utilisation intensive de l'ISS pour les besoins de la recherche scientifique, de l'observation de la Terre, du développement technologique et de l'expérimentation en sciences des matériaux et en physiologie humaine, lequel démarrage aura lieu en 2004 avec le lancement du laboratoire Columbus de l'ESA.

Frank De Winne est le deuxième astronaute belge à obtenir une affectation dans le cadre d'une mission spatiale. Son prédécesseur, Dirk Frimout, avait participé en qualité de spécialiste charge utile à la mission ATLAS-1 de la navette spatiale américaine en mars-avril 1992.

Pour obtenir de plus amples informations, veuillez contacter :

ESA/Centre des Astronautes européens (EAC) - Cologne

Jean Coisne

Tél. : +49 2203 6001 110/111

Fax : +49 2203 6001 112

Cabinet du Ministre de la Recherche scientifique - Bruxelles

Emmanuelle Courtheoux

Tél. : +32 2 506 57 64

GSM : +32 476 63 9908

 

( *) Personal data

Born in Ghent, Belgium, 25 April 1961, Frank is married and has three children. He enjoys football, small PC applications and gastronomy.

Education

Frank De Winne graduated from the Royal School of Cadets, Lier, in 1979. He received a Masters degree in telecommunications and civil engineering from the Royal Military Academy, Brussels, in 1984. He was awarded the AIA Prize for the best thesis. In 1991, he completed the Staff Course at the Defence College, in Brussels gaining the highest distinction. In 1992, he graduated from the Empire Test Pilots School (ETPS) in Boscombe Down, England, where he was awarded the McKenna Trophy.

Organisations

Member of the Belgian Armed Forces Flying Personnel Association.

Special honours

In 1977 Frank was the first non-American pilot to receive the Joe Bill Dryden Semper Viper Award for demonstrating exceptional skills during a flight. In July 1999 he was appointed 'Officier in de Orde van Oranje Nassau' by the Dutch Queen for shown leadership during operation Allied Force.

Experience

After completing his pilot training with the Belgian Air Force, in 1986, Frank De Winne was an operational pilot on Mirage V aircraft. Detached to the Company SAGEM in Paris in 1989, he then worked in the Mirage Safety Improvement Programme where he was responsible for the preparation of the operational and technical specifications of the Mirage upgrade programme.

In December 1992, he was appointed to the Test and Evaluation branch of the Belgian Air Force. As a test pilot, he was involved in various activities, such as CARAPACE (an electronic warfare programme on F16) at Eglin Air Force Base, USA, and a Self-Protection Programme for the C130 aircraft. During that period, he also flew in Gosselies as a reception pilot in different aircraft types.

From January 1994 to April 1995, Frank De Winne was responsible for the flight safety programme of the 1st Fighter Wing at Beauvechain, Belgium.

From April 1995 to July 1996, as a senior test pilot in the European Participating Air Forces (EPAF), he was detached to Edwards Air Force Base, California, where he worked on the mid-life update of the F16 aircraft, focusing on radar testing.

From 1996 to August 1998, he was senior test pilot in the Belgian Air Force, responsible for all test programmes and for all pilot-vehicle interfaces for future aircraft/software updates.

From August 1998 to January 2000, Frank De Winne was the Squadron Commander of the 349th Fighter Squadron at Kleine Brogel Airbase, Belgium.

During operation Allied Force, Frank De Winne was the detachment commander of the Deployable Air Task Force, a combined Belgian/Dutch detachment that flew about 2000 sorties during this Nato campaign. He has logged 17 combat sorties.

Frank De Winne has logged more than 2300 hours flying time on several types of high-performance aircraft including Mirage, F16, Jaguar and Tornado.

In January 2000, Frank De Winne joined the European Astronaut Corps of the European Space Agency (ESA), whose homebase is the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, Germany.

Current assignment

In August 2001, De Winne took up training at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre (GCTC), Star City, near Moscow. Training includes elements of Basic Training for the International Space Station as well as training as Soyuz flight engineer.

 

For further information:

Bureau des Relations avec les Médias

Tel: +33(0)1.53.69.7155

Fax: +33(0)1.53.69.7690