This is the first comprehensive book on the European Hermes program. It tells the fascinating story of how Europe aimed for an independent manned spaceflight capability which was to complement US and Soviet/Russian space activities.In 1975, France decided to expand its plans for automated satellites for materials processing to include the development of a small 10 ton spaceplane to be launched on top of a future heavy-lifting Ariane rocket. This Hermes spaceplane would give Europe its own human spaceflight capability for shuttling crews between Earth and space stations. The European Space Agency backed the proposal. Unfortunately, after detailed studies, the project was cancelled in 1993. If Hermes had been introduced into service, it could have become the preferred "space taxi" for ferrying crews to and from the International Space Station. But that opportunity was lost. This book provides the first look of the complete story of and reasons for the demise of thisambitious program. It also gives an account which pieces of Hermes survived and are active in the 2nd decade of the 21st century. This fascinating story will be a great read for space enthusiasts. But it will also serve as a comprehensive documentation of an important episode in the history of manned spaceflight.

Origins: re-entry vehicles and orbital factories.- Getting serious: CNES develops a concept.- One or the other: selecting the prime contractor.- Safety rethink: the Challenger accident.- The road not taken: CNES decides against Maia.- The Hague: adoption by ESA.- Ever growing: Hermes gains a module.- Competition and the others: spacecraft from around the world.- Shifting priorities: equipment relocations (1989-1990).- The transatlantic scene: Freedom struggles, Columbus and the DoD.- Buying time: the six-month extension of Phase 1 (1990).- Outside influence: the costly fall of the Berlin Wall (1990-1991).- Change at Munich: stretching the imagination (1991).- Scaling down: X-2000 and Russia to the rescue (1991-1992).- Grenada: the end of the road (1992).- Descendants: of astronauts and wings.- Space freighter for ISS: the promise of ATV.- Hermes' legacy: a continued mission of sorts.- Keeping in touch: the DRS satellites and Mission Control.- Staying cool: the thermal protection system.- In Orbit Infrastructure: Platforms and Space Stations.- Learning to fly: astronauts and their training.- Inside and out: the space suits and escape systems.- Lift-off and getting home safely: preparation, launch and landing facilities.- Looking back: the Hermes experience.- Afterword.- Appendix A.- Appendix B.- Appendix C.