Jean-Loup Chrétien
Encyclopedia
Jean-Loup Jacques Marie Chrétien, is a French
engineer
, a retired Général de Brigade (brigadier general) in the Armée de l'Air (French air force), and a former CNES
astronaut
. He flew on two Franco-Soviet space missions and a NASA
Space Shuttle
mission. Chrétien was the first Frenchman and the first western European in space.
, France. Married to and then divorced from Amy Kristine Jensen of New Canaan, Connecticut
. Five children (one deceased), among whom one daughter named Lauren with Amy. Lauren and her mother currently live in Houston, TX. Hobbies include skiing in Winter and sailing in Summer. He also enjoys golf, wind-surfing, car-rallying and woodworking. In addition, he plays the church organ, and took an electric one with him during his first stay in Star City, Russia. His father, Jacques, was a Navy sailor, and his mother, the former Marie-Blanche Coudurier, was a housewife. Chrétien is fluent in French, English and Russian.
, the Collège Saint-Charles à Saint-Brieuc
, and the Lycée de Morlaix
. He entered the École de l'Air (the French Air Force Academy) at Salon-de-Provence in 1959, and graduated in 1961, receiving a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering.
(on July 2, 1982 ). Recipient of the Order of Lenin
; the Order of the Red Banner of Labor; Commandeur de la Légion d’Honneur (Commander of the Order of the Legion of Honor); Chevalier de l'Ordre National du Mérite
(Knight of the National Order of Merit); Titulaire de la Médaille de l'Aéronautique
(Holder of the Aeronautics Medal), and honorary citizenship of Arkalyk
.
s. He was promoted to Lieutenant, and joined the 5th Fighter Squadron in Orange, in the Southeast of France, where he served for seven years as a fighter pilot in an operational squadron flying Super-Mystere B2’s and then Mirage III interceptors. In 1970, he was assigned to the French test pilots school, EPNER (Ecole du Personnel Navigant d'Essais et de Réception), then served as a test pilot at the Istres Flight Test Center
for seven years. During that time he was responsible for supervising the flight test program for the Mirage F-1 fighter. In 1977-78, he was appointed Deputy Commander of the South Air Defence Division in Aix en Provence, and he served in this position until his selection as a cosmonaut in June 1980. Chrétien remained a French Air Force officer but was placed on detachment to CNES
for his space flight activities ensuring his availability for future flights with the Shuttle (NASA), Mir
(Soviet Union) or Spacelab
(ESA). He has accumulated over 8000 hours of flying time in various aircraft, including Russia’s Tupolev 154, MiG-25
, and Sukhoi Su-26
and Sukhoi Su-27
. A veteran of three space flights, Chrétien was the 10th Intercosmos
cosmonaut, and has spent a total of 43 days, 11 hours, 18 minutes, 42 seconds in space, including an EVA
of 5 hours, 57 minutes.
In April 1979, the Soviet Union offered France the opportunity to fly a cosmonaut on board a joint Soviet-French space flight, along the same lines as the agreement to fly non-Soviet cosmonauts from member countries of the Intercosmos program. The offer was accepted, and France began a spationaut selection process in September 1979. Chrétien was one of two finalists named on 12 June 1980. He started training at the Yuri Gagarin
Cosmonaut Training Center in September 1980. The following year he was named as the Research Cosmonaut for the prime crew of the Soyuz T-6
mission.
Soyuz T-6
was launched on 24 June 1982, and Chrétien, Dzhanibekov
and Ivanchenkov
linked up with Salyut 7
and joined the crew of Berezovoi
and Lebedev
already on board. They spent nearly seven days carrying out a program of joint Soviet-French experiments, including a series of French echography cardiovascular monitoring system experiments, before returning to Earth after a flight lasting 7 days, 21 hours, 50 minutes, 42 seconds. This flight made him the first Western non-American to go to space, as well as the first Western European.
Following the mission he was appointed Chief, CNES Astronaut Office.
Chrétien was selected as the back-up crew member for STS-51-G
(Patrick Baudry
, another CNES astronaut, flew on that mission). During 1984-85, he participated in mission training at the Johnson Space Center.
Chrétien made his second space flight as a Research Cosmonaut on board Soyuz TM-7
, which launched on 26 November 1988. Together with Volkov
and Krikalev
, he linked up with Mir and joined the crew of Titov
, Manarov and Polyakov
already on board. They spent 22 days carrying out a program of joint Soviet-French experiments, including a 5 hour and 57 minute EVA by Volkov and Chrétien during which the two men installed the French ERA experimental deployable structure and a panel of material samples. In making the EVA, he became the first non-American and non-Soviet to walk in space. In addition, he was the first non-Soviet cosmonaut to make a second space flight aboard a Soviet spacecraft. The mission lasted 24 days, 18 hours, 7 minutes.
During 1990-93, Chrétien participated in Buran
spacecraft pilot training at the Moscow Joukovski Institute. He has also flown the Tupolev 154 and MiG-25 aircraft, flying simulators equivalent to the Shuttle Training Aircraft (STA).
In 1994, he was selected as part of NASA Astronaut Group 15 to officially become an International Mission Specialist with NASA.
Chrétien attended ASCAN Training at the Johnson Space Center during 1995. He was initially assigned to work technical issues for the Operations Planning Branch of the Astronaut Office. He served on the crew of STS-86
Atlantis (25 September to 6 October 1997) the seventh mission to rendezvous and dock with the Russian Space Station Mir. Highlights included the delivery of a Mir attitude control computer, the exchange of U.S. crew members Mike Foale
and David Wolf, a spacewalk by Scott Parazynski
and Vladimir Titov
to retrieve four experiments first deployed on Mir during the STS-76
docking mission, the transfer to Mir of 10,400 pounds of science and logistics, and the return of experiment hardware and results to Earth. Mission duration was 10 days, 19 hours, 21 minutes.
In September 2000, while visiting a Home Depot store in Webster, Texas
, he was hit by a 68-pound drill press that fell from a shelf more than ten feet above him. The injuries to his neck, head and shoulders were severe enough that a NASA flight surgeon determined that Chrétien couldn't fly anymore. He was forced to retire from the space program in 2001. He filed a $15 million lawsuit against Home Depot several months after the accident. The company settled the suit in 2002. The terms of the settlement are protected by a confidentiality agreement. Chrétien is currently working for Tietronix Software as the vice president of Research and Development in Houston, Texas.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
, a retired Général de Brigade (brigadier general) in the Armée de l'Air (French air force), and a former CNES
CNES
The is the French government space agency . Established under President Charles de Gaulle in 1961, its headquarters are located in central Paris and it is under the supervision of the French Ministries of Defence and Research...
astronaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
. He flew on two Franco-Soviet space missions and a NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
mission. Chrétien was the first Frenchman and the first western European in space.
Personal
Born 20 August 1938, in the town of La RochelleLa Rochelle
La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988...
, France. Married to and then divorced from Amy Kristine Jensen of New Canaan, Connecticut
New Canaan, Connecticut
New Canaan is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, northeast of Stamford, on the Fivemile River. The population was 19,738 according to the 2010 census.The town is one of the most affluent communities in the United States...
. Five children (one deceased), among whom one daughter named Lauren with Amy. Lauren and her mother currently live in Houston, TX. Hobbies include skiing in Winter and sailing in Summer. He also enjoys golf, wind-surfing, car-rallying and woodworking. In addition, he plays the church organ, and took an electric one with him during his first stay in Star City, Russia. His father, Jacques, was a Navy sailor, and his mother, the former Marie-Blanche Coudurier, was a housewife. Chrétien is fluent in French, English and Russian.
Education
Chrétien was educated at L'École communale à PloujeanPloujean
Ploujean is a former commune of Finistère which is now part of Morlaix since February 22, 1959.The church was built in the 15th century. It has been listed as a Monument historique since 1914 by the French Ministry of Culture, and its organ, built by Thomas Dallam II in the 17th century, has been...
, the Collège Saint-Charles à Saint-Brieuc
Saint-Brieuc
Saint-Brieuc is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwestern France.-History:Saint-Brieuc is named after a Welsh monk Brioc, who evangelized the region in the 6th century and established an oratory there...
, and the Lycée de Morlaix
Morlaix
Morlaix is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in northwestern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.-Leisure and tourism:...
. He entered the École de l'Air (the French Air Force Academy) at Salon-de-Provence in 1959, and graduated in 1961, receiving a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering.
Organisations
Member of the board of the "Académie de l'Air et de l'Espace", and the French Air and Space Museum. Former Counselor for Space Activities (Manned) to the President of Dassault Aviation. Member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the International Academy of Astronautics, and the Association of Space Explorers. Member of the Board of BRIT AIR, an airline in his hometown, Morlaix.Awards and honors
Awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet UnionHero of the Soviet Union
The title Hero of the Soviet Union was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society.-Overview:...
(on July 2, 1982 ). Recipient of the Order of Lenin
Order of Lenin
The Order of Lenin , named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was the highest decoration bestowed by the Soviet Union...
; the Order of the Red Banner of Labor; Commandeur de la Légion d’Honneur (Commander of the Order of the Legion of Honor); Chevalier de l'Ordre National du Mérite
Ordre National du Mérite
The Ordre national du Mérite is an Order of State awarded by the President of the French Republic. It was founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle...
(Knight of the National Order of Merit); Titulaire de la Médaille de l'Aéronautique
Médaille de l'Aéronautique
The Médaille de l'Aéronautique is an order of merit created on 14 February 1945.-History:Before the Second World War, it was envisioned to create an award similar to the Order of Maritime Merit, an Order of Merit, Air, intended for personal civil and military aeronautics. But the war put an end to...
(Holder of the Aeronautics Medal), and honorary citizenship of Arkalyk
Arkalyk
Arkalyk is a city in Kostanay Province, northern Kazakhstan. Earlier, it was the centre of Torgay province, which was abolished in 1997. Today, it is the administrative centre of Torgay region, Kostanay province....
.
Career
Chrétien received his fighter pilot/pilot-engineer wings in 1962, after one year of training on Mystère IVDassault Mystère IV
|-See also:-External links:*...
s. He was promoted to Lieutenant, and joined the 5th Fighter Squadron in Orange, in the Southeast of France, where he served for seven years as a fighter pilot in an operational squadron flying Super-Mystere B2’s and then Mirage III interceptors. In 1970, he was assigned to the French test pilots school, EPNER (Ecole du Personnel Navigant d'Essais et de Réception), then served as a test pilot at the Istres Flight Test Center
Istres Air Base
Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is a large multi-role tasked French Air Force base located near Istres, northwest of Marseille, France. The airport facilities are also known as Istres - Le Tubé .- Armée de l'air :...
for seven years. During that time he was responsible for supervising the flight test program for the Mirage F-1 fighter. In 1977-78, he was appointed Deputy Commander of the South Air Defence Division in Aix en Provence, and he served in this position until his selection as a cosmonaut in June 1980. Chrétien remained a French Air Force officer but was placed on detachment to CNES
CNES
The is the French government space agency . Established under President Charles de Gaulle in 1961, its headquarters are located in central Paris and it is under the supervision of the French Ministries of Defence and Research...
for his space flight activities ensuring his availability for future flights with the Shuttle (NASA), Mir
Mir
Mir was a space station operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, at first by the Soviet Union and then by Russia. Assembled in orbit from 1986 to 1996, Mir was the first modular space station and had a greater mass than that of any previous spacecraft, holding the record for the...
(Soviet Union) or Spacelab
Spacelab
Spacelab was a reusable laboratory used on certain spaceflights flown by the Space Shuttle. The laboratory consisted of multiple components, including a pressurized module, an unpressurized carrier and other related hardware housed in the Shuttle's cargo bay...
(ESA). He has accumulated over 8000 hours of flying time in various aircraft, including Russia’s Tupolev 154, MiG-25
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25 is a supersonic interceptor and reconnaissance aircraft that was among the fastest military aircraft to enter service. Designed by the Soviet Union's Mikoyan-Gurevich bureau the first prototype flew in 1964 with entry into service in 1970...
, and Sukhoi Su-26
Sukhoi Su-26
|-See also:...
and Sukhoi Su-27
Sukhoi Su-27
The Sukhoi Su-27 is a twin-engine supermanoeuverable fighter aircraft designed by Sukhoi. It was intended as a direct competitor for the large United States fourth generation fighters, with range, heavy armament, sophisticated avionics and high manoeuvrability...
. A veteran of three space flights, Chrétien was the 10th Intercosmos
Intercosmos
Interkosmos was a space program of the Soviet Union designed to include members of military forces of allied Warsaw Pact countries in manned and unmanned missions...
cosmonaut, and has spent a total of 43 days, 11 hours, 18 minutes, 42 seconds in space, including an EVA
Extra-vehicular activity
Extra-vehicular activity is work done by an astronaut away from the Earth, and outside of a spacecraft. The term most commonly applies to an EVA made outside a craft orbiting Earth , but also applies to an EVA made on the surface of the Moon...
of 5 hours, 57 minutes.
In April 1979, the Soviet Union offered France the opportunity to fly a cosmonaut on board a joint Soviet-French space flight, along the same lines as the agreement to fly non-Soviet cosmonauts from member countries of the Intercosmos program. The offer was accepted, and France began a spationaut selection process in September 1979. Chrétien was one of two finalists named on 12 June 1980. He started training at the Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut. He was the first human to journey into outer space, when his Vostok spacecraft completed an orbit of the Earth on April 12, 1961....
Cosmonaut Training Center in September 1980. The following year he was named as the Research Cosmonaut for the prime crew of the Soyuz T-6
Soyuz T-6
-Backup crew:-Mission parameters:*Mass: 6850 kg*Perigee: 189 km*Apogee: 233 km*Inclination: 51.7°*Period: 88.7 minutes-Mission highlights:...
mission.
Soyuz T-6
Soyuz T-6
-Backup crew:-Mission parameters:*Mass: 6850 kg*Perigee: 189 km*Apogee: 233 km*Inclination: 51.7°*Period: 88.7 minutes-Mission highlights:...
was launched on 24 June 1982, and Chrétien, Dzhanibekov
Vladimir Dzhanibekov
Vladimir Aleksandrovich Dzhanibekov is a former cosmonaut who made five flights.He was born in the remote area of Iskandar in Tashkent Province, Uzbekistan. He changed his surname from Krysin when he married to honor his wife's family, which was noble kin of the descendants of the medieval Kazakh...
and Ivanchenkov
Aleksandr Ivanchenkov
Aleksandr Sergeyevich Ivanchenkov is a retired Soviet cosmonaut who flew as Flight Engineer on Soyuz 29 and Soyuz T-6, he spent 147 days, 12 hours and 37 minutes in space....
linked up with Salyut 7
Salyut 7
Salyut 7 was a space station in low Earth orbit from April 1982 to February 1991. It was first manned in May 1982 with two crew via Soyuz T-5, and last visited in June 1986, by Soyuz T-15. Various crew and modules were used over its lifetime, including a total of 12 manned and 15 unmanned launches...
and joined the crew of Berezovoi
Anatoli Berezovoy
Anatoly Nikolayevich Berezovoy is a former Soviet cosmonaut.Berezovoy was born on April 11, 1942 in Enem, Adyghe Autonomous Oblast, Russian SFSR in a Ukrainian family. He is married with two children. He graduated from the Air Force AcademyHe was selected as a cosmonaut on April 27, 1970. He...
and Lebedev
Valentin Lebedev
Valentin Vitaljevich Lebedev was a Soviet cosmonaut who made two flights into space. His stay aboard the Space Station Salyut 7 with Anatoly Berezovoy in 1982, which lasted 211 days, was recorded in the Guinness Book of Records....
already on board. They spent nearly seven days carrying out a program of joint Soviet-French experiments, including a series of French echography cardiovascular monitoring system experiments, before returning to Earth after a flight lasting 7 days, 21 hours, 50 minutes, 42 seconds. This flight made him the first Western non-American to go to space, as well as the first Western European.
Chrétien was selected as the back-up crew member for STS-51-G
STS-51-G
STS-51-G was the eighteenth flight of NASA's Space Shuttle program, and the fifth flight of Space Shuttle Discovery. The mission launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on 17 June 1985...
(Patrick Baudry
Patrick Baudry
Patrick Pierre Roger Baudry , is a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the French Air Force and a former CNES astronaut...
, another CNES astronaut, flew on that mission). During 1984-85, he participated in mission training at the Johnson Space Center.
Chrétien made his second space flight as a Research Cosmonaut on board Soyuz TM-7
Soyuz TM-7
-Mission parameters:*Mass: 7,000 kg 15,400 lb*Perigee: 194 km *Apogee: 235 km *Inclination: 51.6°*Period: 88.8 minutes-Mission highlights:...
, which launched on 26 November 1988. Together with Volkov
Alexander Alexandrovich Volkov (cosmonaut)
Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Volkov is a Russian cosmonaut.At the age of 13, Volkov witnessed Yuri Gagarin become the first man in space and this inspired him to become a cosmonaut...
and Krikalev
Sergei Krikalev
Sergei Konstantinovich Krikalev is a Russian cosmonaut and mechanical engineer. As a prominent rocket scientist, he has been veteran of six space flights and currently has spent more time in space than any other human being.On August 16, 2005 at 1:44 a.m...
, he linked up with Mir and joined the crew of Titov
Vladimir Titov
Vladimir Georgiyevich Titov , Colonel, Russian Air Force, Ret., and former Russian cosmonaut was born January 1, 1947, in Sretensk, in the Zabaykalsky Krai region of Russia. He is married to the former Alexandra Kozlova of Ivanovo Region, Russia...
, Manarov and Polyakov
Valeriy Polyakov
Valeri Vladimirovich Polyakov is a former Russian cosmonaut. He is the holder of the record for the longest single spaceflight in human history,staying aboard the Mir space station for more than 14 months during one trip....
already on board. They spent 22 days carrying out a program of joint Soviet-French experiments, including a 5 hour and 57 minute EVA by Volkov and Chrétien during which the two men installed the French ERA experimental deployable structure and a panel of material samples. In making the EVA, he became the first non-American and non-Soviet to walk in space. In addition, he was the first non-Soviet cosmonaut to make a second space flight aboard a Soviet spacecraft. The mission lasted 24 days, 18 hours, 7 minutes.
During 1990-93, Chrétien participated in Buran
Shuttle Buran
The Buran spacecraft , GRAU index 11F35 K1 was a Russian orbital vehicle analogous in function and design to the US Space Shuttle and developed by Chief Designer Gleb Lozino-Lozinskiy of Energia rocket corporation...
spacecraft pilot training at the Moscow Joukovski Institute. He has also flown the Tupolev 154 and MiG-25 aircraft, flying simulators equivalent to the Shuttle Training Aircraft (STA).
In 1994, he was selected as part of NASA Astronaut Group 15 to officially become an International Mission Specialist with NASA.
Chrétien attended ASCAN Training at the Johnson Space Center during 1995. He was initially assigned to work technical issues for the Operations Planning Branch of the Astronaut Office. He served on the crew of STS-86
STS-86
STS-86 was a Space Shuttle Atlantis mission to the Mir space station. This was the last Atlantis mission before it was taken out of service temporarily for maintenance and upgrades, including the glass cockpit.-Crew:-Crew notes:...
Atlantis (25 September to 6 October 1997) the seventh mission to rendezvous and dock with the Russian Space Station Mir. Highlights included the delivery of a Mir attitude control computer, the exchange of U.S. crew members Mike Foale
Michael Foale
Colin Michael Foale, CBE, PhD is a British-American astrophysicist with dual citizenship and a NASA astronaut. He is a veteran of six space shuttle missions and extended stays on both Mir and the International Space Station...
and David Wolf, a spacewalk by Scott Parazynski
Scott E. Parazynski
Scott Edward Parazynski, M.D. is an American physician and a former NASA astronaut. A veteran of five Space Shuttle flights and seven spacewalks, Parazynski's latest mission was STS-120 in October, 2007 --- highlighted by a dramatic, unplanned EVA to repair a live solar array...
and Vladimir Titov
Vladimir Titov
Vladimir Georgiyevich Titov , Colonel, Russian Air Force, Ret., and former Russian cosmonaut was born January 1, 1947, in Sretensk, in the Zabaykalsky Krai region of Russia. He is married to the former Alexandra Kozlova of Ivanovo Region, Russia...
to retrieve four experiments first deployed on Mir during the STS-76
STS-76
STS-76 was NASA's 76th Space Shuttle mission, and the 16th mission for Atlantis. STS-76 launched on 22 March 1996 at 3:13 am EST from Kennedy Space Center launch pad 39B...
docking mission, the transfer to Mir of 10,400 pounds of science and logistics, and the return of experiment hardware and results to Earth. Mission duration was 10 days, 19 hours, 21 minutes.
In September 2000, while visiting a Home Depot store in Webster, Texas
Webster, Texas
Webster is a city in the U.S. state of Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. The population was 9,083 at the 2000 census.-History:...
, he was hit by a 68-pound drill press that fell from a shelf more than ten feet above him. The injuries to his neck, head and shoulders were severe enough that a NASA flight surgeon determined that Chrétien couldn't fly anymore. He was forced to retire from the space program in 2001. He filed a $15 million lawsuit against Home Depot several months after the accident. The company settled the suit in 2002. The terms of the settlement are protected by a confidentiality agreement. Chrétien is currently working for Tietronix Software as the vice president of Research and Development in Houston, Texas.