French astronaut says Columbia should no longer have been used (Gad!)

SpaceDaily.Com ^ | 1-2-2003 | Agence France-Presse

[sonofatpatcher2]

Re: A French astronaut who took part in an earlier US shuttle mission and has criticised current space programmes said Saturday the shuttle Columbia which disintegrated should have been out of use long ago. Patrick Baudry said on French television he was "up in arms" over the disaster.

"I think the shuttle should have been taken out of use long ago," Baudry said: "It's a magnificent machine that the Americans developed. But extremely dangerous."

The Frenchman charged that the Columbia was limited in its capacity, and yet had to serve the International Space Station (ISS) "about which nobody knows exactly what it's for and which I personally don't think really serves much purpose." A French astronaut who took part in an earlier US shuttle mission and has criticised current space programmes said Saturday the shuttle Columbia which disintegrated should have been out of use long ago. Patrick Baudry said on French television he was "up in arms" over the disaster.

"I think the shuttle should have been taken out of use long ago," Baudry said: "It's a magnificent machine that the Americans developed. But extremely dangerous."

The Frenchman charged that the Columbia was limited in its capacity, and yet had to serve the International Space Station (ISS) "about which nobody knows exactly what it's for and which I personally don't think really serves much purpose."

"I think the shuttle should have been taken out of use long ago," Baudry said: "It's a magnificent machine that the Americans developed. But extremely dangerous."

The Frenchman charged that the Columbia was limited in its capacity, and yet had to serve the International Space Station (ISS) "about which nobody knows exactly what it's for and which I personally don't think really serves much purpose."

The French! Sorry, but this just set me off!

[DCBryan1]

Thats wierd, the French also same the same thing about deoderant and honor".

[July 4th]

We have the shuttle. They have the Concorde. Both are pushing their safety envelopes. Today was not the right day to bring it up.

[DaBroasta]

Is there any circumstance these cowards won't opt to surrender under?

[MadIvan]

This amount of bad taste is hard fo fathom. Monsieur, you are entitled to your opinion, but really, you should have examined the evidence more carefully, and waited till a more appropriate time, to express it.

Regards, Ivan

[HighWheeler]

"French astronaut says...."

This here is enough for me to stop reading.

[KellyAdmirer]

The Frenchman charged that the Columbia was limited in its capacity, and yet had to serve the International Space Station (ISS)

Other reports I have seen said Columbia did not, in fact, service the ISS, only the other three shuttles go that high.

[Willie Green]

The French! Sorry, but this just set me off!

No reason to get upset.
It's obvious that he's simply an advocate of newer, more sophisticated designs and more exotic missions.

[Mike Darancette]

The Frenchman charged that the Columbia was limited in its capacity...

Yes we can use the French Shuttle "Marshall Petain" powered by insipid wine and made of cheese.

Axis of Weasels is appropriate.

[HighWheeler]

They don't need deodorant, they developed powerful perfumes that allows them to cope easily with their hydrophobia.

[Diddle E. Squat]

And what exactly is the safety record of the French space shuttle?

[LenS]

He's not engaging in his national sport of surrendering. He's just expressing the widespread frustration by so many in the space community that no one is pushing hard to get man in space. Even the leader, the US, is still using very old equipment and technology. I suspect that we'll hear many others like him from both the US, from Russia, from Europe and from Asia as this week unfolds.

No matter. If the Chinese succeed with their plans to put people in space and perhaps the moon again, we'll see real quickly a massive reinvestment in space technology by the US. We always need a little competition to get our interest.

[Michael81Dus]

I agree, it´s not the right time to express concerns. This is the time for mourning and sorrow.

[Guillermo]

He's right about the uselessness of the International Space Station aka the Glorified Mir.

[Publius6961]

Sorry, einstein, but when the French Space Program catches up to where we were 30 years ago, you can start giving advice.
Until then, better to be silent and be thought a fool, than open your mouth and remove all doubt!

[martin_fierro]

La rétrospection est 20/20, monsieur.

[justshe]

France will probably attempt to send this to the International World Court. Not that it would do them any good, but......sigh....

[Clara Lou]

I had not known that Euroweenie astronauts existed. French wimps-- bah!

[sonofatpatcher2]

Re: He's right about the uselessness of the International Space Station aka the Glorified Mir.

I am all for space exploration. I say spend 100 Billion a year on it. Get back to the Moon. Get to Mars. The asteriods. Colonize the Moon and Mars, mine the riches of the astroids. And, YES, build more of those Glorified Mirs

[Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)]

These cheese eating surrentder monkeys can´t even get an aircraft carrier to float.