'Project Astronaut' John McFall To Become First Paralympian In Space

‘Project Astronaut’ John McFall To Become First Paralympian In Space

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John McFall, Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games bronze medalist, is set to become the first person with a physical disability to take part in a mission to the International Space Station (ISS).

The Great Britain Paralympic sprinter, who is also a surgeon, has been cleared with medical certification to undertake a long-duration mission, the European Space Agency announced.

McFall described it as an “important milestone in the history of human spaceflight”.

His right leg above the knee was amputated, at the age of 19, following a serious motorbike accident. He began sprinting after that with a prosthesis.

The Paralympian has been selected as a part of the ESA’s Fly project. It makes space mission accessible for all.

“It’s great that we can say after a huge amount of work in the last 18 months that we have demonstrated that it’s technically possible for someone with a disability like mine to fly on a long duration mission,” said McFall. 

“And now we’re progressing to the next phase and what we want to do is realise that opportunity to fly, so moving forward, we’re moving into the Mission Ready phase.

“The Mission Ready phase is an important step in moving forward to realise a potential flight opportunity. This phase will include looking at hardware certification and moving further down that process. 

“We’re going to be looking at what potential science could be conducted on the International Space Station should I get the opportunity to fly and importantly we’re looking towards medical certification for me to fly on a long duration mission.

“One of the roles of an astronaut is to do important science in microgravity whilst working in space and it’s really my hope that if I get the chance to fly we realise what we do in space, the things we learn, the problems we solve, the technology that we develop has a trickle-down effect and benefits people here on earth in wider society.

“This progression to the Mission Ready phase is a really important milestone in the history of human spaceflight.”

Liz Johns, interim head of space exploration at the UK Space Agency, said: “It is fantastic to see that John and the team at ESA have proved it is technically possible for someone with a physical disability like his to live and work on the International Space Station.   

“This is ground-breaking work that no other space agency has done before. Now we are looking forward to supporting John during the next phase: Fly! Mission Ready. This is an essential step towards the first long-term mission for an astronaut with a physical disability.”


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