Overview
- Vast publicly committed to a crewed mission to its single‑module Haven‑1 station with French astronaut Arnaud Prost named to the inaugural crew and also announced a separate plan to send Thomas Pesquet to the ISS, all described by the company as using SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets and Dragon 2 capsules.
- The firm says Haven‑1 would operate for three years and host four two‑week missions as a demonstrator for private orbital habitation, but those schedule and operational details remain company claims and are still developing.
- Vast outlined a follow‑on Haven‑2 program that it says would expand to nine modules, aim to launch about three modules per year with at least one on a European rocket, and target four modules in orbit by 2030 to support six‑month stays.
- The company asserted its modules will cost five to ten times less than many ISS modules and said it holds contracts with NASA and plans a European headquarters in Paris, though the cost and timeline claims have not been independently verified.
- The announcement accelerates competition to replace the ISS as it nears retirement in 2030 and raises near‑term questions about technical certification, funding, launch and safety approvals that will determine whether private stations can scale access to low Earth orbit.